#and she told me about the same thing from her side. and she told me about how she loved london because she would walk the streets

[ladybirdswritings]

Pretty Thing - Cooper Howard (Ghoul) x Reader

Summary: You’re a shiny, pretty prize worth more caps than can be counted on ten hands altogether. There’s something special about you, and the Ghoul is determined to figure out just what it is.

Notes: I’ve been wanting to write for this cowboy for days now and I’ve finally come around to it. Cowboys are my specialty lately <3. Lmk if u love this and I’ll write more (feel free to leave me lots of comments and interactions, I love those!!)

A03 | masterlist | next chap

pretty thing…

“Well lookie here, seems you vaulties ain’t as perfect as you promise to be, huh?”

A furrow of chocolate brows, offense and confusion from sweet Lucy MacLean. This vault promised development in weaponry that the new world had never seen before. It was a thing of storybooks, the kind of thing her dad told her right before her head hit the pillow.

Now, here she was; and it wasn’t a caged weapon she was staring at… no, but rather a caged person.

“This violates all of our policies…” she muttered softly, worry stitched in her soft features as she looked on at the mangled cowboy beside her.

“Tsk tsk, sweetheart. You oughta be more careful with trustin’ these shit-eating freaks. Ain’t you learned your lesson first time round?”

Lucy sighed, falling to her knees and grazing a warm hand against the metal. She looked on at you with pity. Weak, hazy you.

How did you end up in this predicament? You didn’t know. You didn’t remember.

It was as if the entirety of everything you’d ever known was only stitched within your brain in jagged, disorderly flashes. This had to be one too. A flash.

A vault dweller and a ghoul, side by side.

It was most certainly a flash.

“What do we do, coop?” The brunette wondered, doe eyes gazing up at the mangled creature. He only smirked.

“We split. You find your precious tin-man you can’t stop yappin’ bout… and I’ll snatch up this dyin’ cargo. Comprende?”

Lucy had come to trust him, and maybe it was a stupid thing to do. Reality was, though, he’d kept her alive this far. Maybe she owed it to him to follow orders. With a huff, she parted— and then?

It was just you and the ghoul.

Heavy footsteps circled your metal cage, like shark to labored minnow. You were far too exhausted to pick up those pretty eyes of yours from the ground they gazed at.

Chains wrapped round your wrists and ankles, cold metal burned against your spine and cheek. There were two ghouls in your peripheral vision, and each one was the same amount of horrifying.

The footsteps halted, and suddenly the mangled, noseless blur was clear as day before you. Kneeled to your level, observant— cold.

“Well well— look at you, huh? Pretty thing. Now I understand takin’ precautions but damn, sweetie. That’s a lotta chains, hm? What’s so scary bout’ you?” He whispered the last part, thread laced finger lifting to slowly push a loose locket of hair from your dampened face through the cage.

You blinked, forcing your gaze upward so to try and meet his eyes. It was exhausting.

He observed you like you were a foreign object, a diamond in the radiated rough.

“I’d wager to say that you’re just the weapon we was lookin’ for, ain’t you?”

God, he didn’t know just how right he was.

If there was one certain thing you could remember clear as day, laced through the flashes, it was your powers. Each and every one of them, laying dormant now.

You were far too poked and prodded, too drained to even think of lifting a finger.

“Been doin’ this for centuries, pretty thing. Centuries and I ain’t ever seen this kinda experimentation on a little fawn. Hm. Guess you was just unlucky.” His breath was warm as it hit your face. Musing and eyeing your exhausted, slumped figure. Observant, taking his time. Your keepers would be coming soon— he didn’t seem worried.

“Tell you what. You look like you gon’ make me lots of money. So you’re comin’ with me. Don’t you worry, I prefer ropes stead’ of chains, sweetie. You’ll be nice n’ comfortable.”

The more he spoke, the farther away he sounded. You were aware he was a ghoul, that much was certain. Yet even so, no part of his voice, no part of his fading threats were even a little bit startling. No.

His voice was a soft yet strong southern drawl and god— it was far more comforting than the chains and cement floor you’d always known. Perhaps that’s why you let the exhaustion overtake you. Perhaps that’s why you closed your eyes.

Did it matter why? No. All that mattered was that you did.

The rest was a blur. The last thing you remember? Frayed ropes being wrapped round you tight as you were freed from your chains. Mangled, coat covered arms lifting you from the cement and golden teeth pressed against your aching ear to whisper:

“C’mon now, pretty thing…”

Then?

Slumber…

¿to be continued?

#cooper howard #cooper howard x reader #cooper howard x you #cooper howard x lucy maclean #cooper howard x female reader #cooper howard x y/n #the ghoul #the ghoul cooper howard #the ghoul x reader #the ghoul x you #the ghoul x lucy #the ghoul x oc #ghoul x lucy #ghoul x reader #ghoul x you #cooper howard fallout #cooper howard fanfiction #cooper howard fic #cooper howard imagine #ghoul fallout #fallout #fallout x reader #fallout x you #fallout ghoul #fallout ghoul x reader #walton goggins #walton goggins x reader #walton ghoulgins

[judes-hoe]

Help together ~LN4

Parrings~Lando Norris x teammate!reader

Summary~ being the new rookie at McLaren and only being 19 you caused your anxiety to go through the roof and Lando helps you cause he went through the same thing.

Warnings~ mention of mental health, anxiety, panic attacks!!!!!!!!!

A/N~ from this TikTok:( also Lando and you have a 4-5 year age gap your 19 turning 20, also pretend Oscar like doesn’t exist for this fic lol😭

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

McLaren had decided to sign you for the 2024 season after Oscar signed to go somewhere else. You were beyond excited to be teammates with Lando, he was someone you looked up to. He was almost just like you.

So far in the first 5 races you’ve started with the best rookie year. Getting p3 2 times and p2 1 time and p4 2 times. But the Miami Grand Prix, the 6th race.

You ended up spinning out almost mid race. Your anxiety kicked in, worried about what people will think about for you crashing on social media. It was like the walk of shame once you got back to the pit lane walking to the McLaren.

Your anxiety made it seem like everyone was watching and looking at you. You stand next to your engineer and watch the rest of the race there. You started picking at round your nails,something you do out of habit.

Your eyes light up when Lando starts to lead the race at the last. You watch as everyone starts to cheer as this will be their star boys first win in formula one. You try to keep smiling and being happy but your anxiety is still eating at you.

You started picking your nails to much making a few fingers bleed, grabbing the bandaids they had in the garage and putting them on the fingers that were bleeding.

You soon watched as the garage erupted into cheers everyone hugging someone. Lando won his first race. You smile when you listen to his radio. He sounded so happy. When he pulls up to the number 1 spot and getting out his car, the cheers in the stands were loud.

You stand to the side when the team is against the barriers waiting for him to celebrate. You watch as he runs to them and jumps the barriers into their arms. You smile at them, happy that he finally won a race.

You watch as he did his interview and went to the cool down room. Your anxiety started to get bad as you started getting uncomfortable even standing. You knew that your panic attack was coming, you always got uncomfortable no matter when or where you knew that was a sign it was coming.

You walk to your drivers room not trying to disturb or make a scene. You sat on the small couch in the room, pulling your knees to your chest trying to calm down.

Lando was up on the podium, first step. He looked down at his team while the British national anthem played. He noticed you weren’t there, he saw how you stood away when he was celebrating with the team, picking your nails. He decided to enjoy his moment. In the back of his head he worried about you.

He celebrated with the team a little more and did a few more interviews before he started to worry about you. It’s been almost 30 minutes and he still hasn’t seen you. “Where is she?” He asked your race engineer. “Last I seen she went into her drivers room?” They told Lando.

He rushed to your drivers room. He knocked on the door. “Darling, It’s me, let me in.” Lando said softly. “C-come in.” You said through short breaths. He walks in closing the door behind him.

He looks at your current state. Teary eyes, stuffy nose, short breaths, and bandaids on your fingers. He walks over and sits next to you. He’s had to help you before sometimes after a bad practice or qualifying.

“I’m here darling.” He spoke softly making you look at him. “Listen to my voice not the ones in that pretty head.” He says to you. “Breathe with me.” He takes deep breaths with you. “Listen to my heartbeat” he said pulling you to his chest laying your head on his chest.

You slowly calm down and breathe normally again. “Sorry for ruining your special day.” You spoke quietly when you felt ready to speak. “Don’t apologize, I did my celebrating I knew you weren’t ok and knew you needed me” he spoke pressing a kiss to your head. “You did great today through, wasn’t your fault you crashed” he said rubbing your back. “Let me see your phone.” He said with a hand out and you hand him you phone. “I’m keeping this until we go our separate ways, you don’t need to worry.” He said stuffing the phone in his pocket.

“Thank you.” You spoke with a smile. “I’ll always be here for you, even if in the future we aren’t teammates, and I know what you’re thinking, you’ll win a race soon, and I’ll be right there to celebrate with you.” He said looking down at you.

You smile at him and nod. “Let’s go celebrate your first win!” You said excitedly your anxiety now gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

#judes-hoe😚 #lando norris x reader #lando fluff #lando fic #lando smut #lando x reader #lando imagine #lando norris #f1 x you #f1 x reader #f1 imagine #f1 fic #f1 fanfic #f1 #mclaren

[weirdo-fun]

What Else Can I Do?

Azriel x Reader - Chapter 2

Here is Chapter 2! I got motivated seeing everyone liking the first chapter so I wrote chapter 2 as soon as I could. Enjoy!

Chapter 1

Summary: Reader ends up geting turned fae and befriends Elain and gets super close with her. But Reader notices Elain gets treated differently, and Reader would like to change that but a certain batboy always gets in her way of trying to help her friend and under her skin.

Word Count: 3.2 K (Sorry I had way to much fun with this one so it’s a long one 😅)

Warnings: Enemies to lovers, slight dislike for inner circle, dual POV 👀, fem! Reader, they just can’t get each other out of their heads

Author's Note: Soooo remember when I said Azriel and Reader will be interacting with one another?.... Yeah sorry that is not happening in this chapter. BUT don't be mad, Azriel is in this chapter he just hasn't "found" Reader yet. :)

Side Note: Apologies for any grammar mistakes. And yes I did listen to "What Else Can I Do" from Encanto as I wrote this.

You and Elain walk through the forest on the outskirts of Velaris, not going too deep so you guys can remember how to get back. The snaps of twigs is heard from under your boots. Your skirts perfectly covering your legs to stop tall blades of grass or sticks from scratching both of your skins. 

You take a deep breath in, smelling the crisp, tree trunk filled air, breathing in new life after being tucked away in the Town House for quite some time. The lush trees, grass, and needle-covered path reminds you of your home when you were a kid. You used to sneak off and play in the woods for hours with the other kids in the neighborhood. The nostalgic feeling puts a smile on your face. 

Elain stops walking and stares up and around her at the trees that seem to almost cover the sky above. You notice her eyes look at the scenery around with fondness. “Beats the boring walls of the Town House doesn’t it?” You ask playfully ask you walk over to her. She nods, “It certainly does.” She pauses for a moment until she looks at you. “Are you sure this is ok?” She asks with worryness in her voice. “I mean, like I know I said yes to this but now that we’re here I am worried what they will do if they find out.” You chuckle, “Hey, you can’t back out now. We are already here. Besides I did leave a note on the dining table saying we will be out and be back soon incase they do come back earlier. So they have no reason to freak out because I literally told them where we are.” You take a moment and your mind immediately goes to Azriel. “Well maybe Azriel will be a prick and throw a fit.” You roll your eyes and think of what he might say if he found out that you took Elain to the woods for a walk. 

You scowl, just thinking about how Azriel will yell at you for “taking a delicate girl with no supervision to the woods” and how “she could have gotten hurt”. It infuriates you that anything thing you do, you always think of what Azriel might say. He would always be the first to cross your mind when you would think of doing something or question yourself if you should be doing a certain thing. More than likely, you would end up doing whatever it was you were contemplating because it would rile you up just thinking about him telling you what you could and couldn’t do. Even if you knew what you were doing wasn’t the best choice, it was a choice he would disprove of and to you that is all that mattered. 

“Hey Azriel isn’t that bad.” Elain tried to say in a convincing tone to try and calm you down. You whip your head towards her with a glare in your eyes. The glare not directed at her but to who she was talking about. “Really?” You say unconvinced. “Azriel, the one who makes it his mission to scold me for almost anything for the simple fact that I don’t agree how he treats you. The same Azriel that doesn’t like me because I talk back to him when I am pretty sure he expects me to just nod my head and agree. The same person in which we can’t even sit next to each other in the same room or we start bickering about how the other one is sitting in the chair the wrong way.” Elain looks at you, at lost for words. You nod your head. “Yeah exactly. Sounds like he is a great guy.” You sarcastically say as you roll your eyes. 

Elain grabs your hand. “Hey, sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I know you guys don’t see eye to eye.” She looks at you with her doe apologetic eyes. “Let’s forget about them for now. Like you said earlier, we are already here. So let’s continue on our walk and take in the scenery.” Her soft voice calming you down almost instantly. You release a deep breath. “Annnnnnd I want to see this improvement of your power that you told me.” Elain says with excitement. “Well it’s not really improvement, more like testing out what else I can do?” You state as a question. Elain wraps her arm around your elbow and starts to pull you along the forest path. “Well then, let’s find out!” 

——————————————————

You were getting frustrated, you frown at the lavender flower that you just grow from the ground. “Another flower”, you think to yourself. You huff as you stand up, looking at the different colored flowers and plants circling you in which you unwantedly grew. You have been at this for only 15 minutes, and even though that is not a very long time it felt like an hour past for you. “Maybe you just need a break?” Elain’s voice calls you out of your negative thoughts. She sat on a rock to the side a few feet from where you decided to sit on the forest floor. You walk over to her with your head down in defeat. “I don’t understand, I was able to make a small cactus in my room that one time but now it just seems like my power went back to making just pretty things.” You huff out as you plop yourself next to Elain on the rock. “Why did the Caldron give me the power to grow things when it can only grow pretty flowers, plants, and vines?!” You annoyingly say. “Like I can’t think of a reason why I won’t be able to grow like giant trees, or moss, or poisonous plants, or even venus fly traps!” You look at the sky hoping the Mother can give you an answer. “Maybe a special condition needs to be met?” Elain says in an encouraging voice. “Like maybe, you have to be meditating, or be fulled with anger. Something like that.” You look at her questionably. “I don’t think a “special condition” needs to be met. I was able to do it once before but now it just seems like the power is blocked somehow.” You try to explain to Elain. It frustrated you not knowing how you were able to grow the cacti some time ago and now you can’t. “Well what were you doing when you grew the cactus? Maybe whatever it was triggered the cactus to grow?” You sit there thinking hard on Elain’s question. You run through the memory again to try and find an answer, a clue as to what triggered the cactus to grow. 

It was early in the afternoon, you were sitting on your window sill looking out at Velaris. You did this sometimes where you would sit and just watch the city at any point in the day. There was no particular reason why you did it, you just enjoyed not having to think about anything and just watch the world move forward. You started fiddling with some vines you grew from your hands, twisting and turning them. You then started to add small flowers buds to the vines. The small buds slowly began to bloom into small flowers of a soft blue color. As you were growing new vines and flowers into the mix, you stood up from the window sill and began to pace slowly in your room as you concentrated on making a flower crown. As you were mindlessly making the crown you started humming a song. You don’t know what song, you just started to hum a tune. As you hummed, you mindlessly were growing this intricate flower pattern of blue and purple flowers. Not realizing that the vines sprouting from the crown were growing towards the floor of your room and started to spread across the floor. You were stuck in your own little world humming a song that you didn’t notice that on the floor one of the vines started to grow vertically, and started to take a different shape. It was only then when you finished making the flower crown and you finished humming the song that you noticed the little cactus with a small blue flower on top next to your feet. Your eyes widen, you never knew you could do that. Then you looked around the room and realized that you let your power go a little bit too much. Vines and flowers spread across the floor of the bedroom and up onto the walls. You did notice that the vines and flowers looked bigger than they normally should. You marveled at what you created and wanted to know if you could do more. 

You blink as you recall the memory of that day. Now thinking back, you did realize that you were very calm and you weren’t actually trying to grow anything at all. “I was just humming a song while mindlessly making a flower crown.” You begin to say to Elain. “I-I think I wasn’t really focussing on anything to be honest. I was actually in my own world subconsciously making the crown.” Elain thinks for a moment and then says, “Maybe that what it is then. Don’t think about it too hard and be relaxed.” You look at her with almost a confused puppy look in your eyes. “Well how do I do that? I can’t just not think about what I want to grow. And before you say meditate like you said before you know damn well I am bad at that.” Elain thinks for a moment, she then smiles and stands up pulling you with her. “Well you said you were humming a song. Then lets hum a song and dance together.” She says completely serious. You look at her not believing what she is suggesting because this is a little out of character for her. “Are you serious?” You question making sure you heard her right. “100 percent.” She nods and smiles at you. “Come on, you were the one saying that I needed to start being more confident in myself and being able to voice my opinion out loud. I think dancing and singing in the middle of the forest without a care in the world will help me let go of my… “delicate nature”. Plus it will help you relax and not think too hard on your power.” You look at her and seeing the determination in her eyes tells you she is super serious about this. 

You give her the biggest smile and giggle as you grab her hand and start to spin her around. Elain laughs and she continues to dance with you with no music. She spins you around and you guys continue this unchoreographed dance with smiles, giggles, and laughs coming from both of you. To have some fun you begin to throw flower pedals in the air like confetti and they fall down around both of you, some getting caught in your guys’s hairs. As you guys dance, jump, and spin, flowers begin to grow surrounding you guys coming from you as the centerpoint. You don’t realized it at first but once you do, you feel a slight weight of power being lifted like the locked door holding your power back was slowly getting unlocked. It felt like the flowers danced with you; they didn’t feel like you were forcing them to grow. It felt like they listened to what you wanted in the moment and obeyed you. You took a hold of that feeling and continued to run with it. As you did a hand full of cacti popped up from the ground. You and Elain stopped dancing and looked at the cacti with amazement. Joyous yells came from both of you, happy that the dancing worked. Who knew having a good a time could unlock a power? 

With the new found feeling of your power and determination in your eyes you grab a hold of that closed door on your power open it. The rush of energy rushed through you and it almost seemed your sensed were heighten even more. Everything, touch, taste, sight, smell, and hearing. But it was a different change to your senses. It’s like you could feel the sort of life energy flowing through the grass beneath your boots; it seemed like you could hear the trees dancing as the wind blew past, to the whispered song that the flowers sung. Nature smelled, different. Like more alive. You couldn’t explain it, but it felt like nature came alive and you could understand it. 

“Hey! Reader are you ok?” Elain tugs on your arm worry written on her face as she sees you starring off. You blink a couple of times, shaking off the shock of your unlocked power. You lift your hands up and in a few seconds an enlarged sapphire blue flower springs up from the ground. The massive size of the flower scares Elain and she stumbles back a few steps. After a few seconds it takes for Elain to recover, she stares at the flower and then at you. “Holy wow. You can do that?!” Elains voice laced with interest and excitement. She walks over to the massive flower, each pedal being her size, to get a better look up close. “I think I can a lot more than that.” You smile walking over to stand next to her. She turns to you intrigued, “Well then let’s see it. What else can you do?” 

——————————————————

Azriel POV 

Shadows disburse as Azriel lands on the balcony of the Town House in the late afternoon. He sighs, glad to be back in Velaris. The mission that Rhys sent him on not only took longer than it needed to take, but Rhys could have easily done it himself. But being High Lord is tiresome and requires a lot of work, so his attention was needed else were. 

Azriel steps into the Town House ready for a quick bath and a cup of tea to help the incoming headache that he knows will receive, before dinner is served. His mind on the warm bath he was thinking of taking was interrupted by the sound of heavy footsteps, a door swinging open, and a yell. “SHE’S NOT HERE!” Nesta’s worried and panicked voice echoes throughout the manor. 

Azriel stops in his tracks for a mear moment and briskly begins to walks in the direction of Nesta’s voice. His shadows start to swarm him, feeling their master’s concern over the commotion so they try to comfort him. “Whose not here? What happened?” Azriel thinks as he makes his way through the manor. 

Azriel follows the yelling and ends up at Elain’s bedroom. Standing at the entrance to her room with the door wide open Azriel sees Nesta panicked written face and Cassian standing next to her with a comforting hand on her shoulder to try and calm her down. “What’s wrong? Did something happen to Elain?” Azriel’s voice grabs the couples attention to see him take a few steps into the room. “We can’t find Elain.” Nesta answers worriedly. “Or Reader.” Cassian adds. “We looked around the manor and neither of them are here.” Cassian states as he walks towards Azriel. “What! Are you sure you checked every room?” Azriel questions with hope laced into his voice. Before Cassian could get a word in, Azriel sent out his shadows to scour the manor for any signs of the girls. 

His shadows come back and tells him that you and Elain were gone. Azriel was about to send them back out to search throughout Velaris for you guys but one shadow whispered to him that there was a note on the dining table. Without a word to Nesta or Cassian, Azriel speed walk to the dining hall. 

He walks in and he does noticed a small folded piece of paper on the large wooden table. Azriel picks it up, unfolds it and reads it. 

“Incase you guys get back earlier than we do. Elain and I are going for a walk in the woods. We shouldn’t be too long, so don’t worry.” 

P.S. We won’t stray too far so don’t panic Azriel 

-Reader :) 

Azriel crumbles the piece of paper and stuffs it in one of his leather pockets. He can’t believe you took Elain out of the Town House when he specifically told Elain to stay inside until either him or Nesta and Cassian got back to escort her if she wished to go somewhere. He should have known that you would convince Elain to do the opposite of what he says. He should have either convinced Cassian and Nesta to take you with them or forced you to go with him on his mission so that THIS wouldn’t happen. Frustration builds inside Azriel as he makes his way back to the balcony, getting ready to fly to the forest to bring Elain back and to yell at you for clearly going against his wishes. 

“Az!” Cassian's voice is heard from behind the shadowsinger, as his heavy footsteps come closer. “Did you find them?” Azriel shakes his head. “No, but I know where they are.” Azriel takes the note from his pocket and holds it up for Cassian. “Reader thought it would a great idea to take Elain to the woods for a walk.” Sarcasm and annoyance fell from his voice. “I swear, that woman is something else.” Azriel states with irritation. “Hey, how about we focus on finding Reader and Elain and then you can decide if you want to bicker with her. Even though I think you are being too hard on her.” Cassian says as calmly as he could to try and settle Azriel down. Azriel doesn’t respond, he just glares at him. “Let’s just find them and bring the back.” Azriel says as his wings shoot him to the sky and carry him towards the forest with Cassian in tow. 

You always did this. Ever since you became friends with Elain, you always disproved of him. It frustrated Azriel to no end that you would always talk back and bicker at him. He disliked how anytime he would tell Elain to do something you would always have something to say back. Even if it didn’t regard Elain, you always wanted to say something. This wasn’t the first time you pulled a stunt like this off. There were a few times where he specifically told you not to do something and what did you do? You did the complete opposite. It’s like you like to push his buttons, get him riled up, and angry at you. He doesn’t understand why you hate so much. All he has done, or tried to do, was to protect Elain because, unlike you with your extroverted nature, she has a softer nature. And Azriel, including the rest of the inner circle, want her to be comfortable and secure after everything that she went through. The same treatment would be applied to you if you had her personally but you don’t. You have to have a very friendly, social butterfly type personality that Azriel tries to hate, but subconsciously finds it interesting, intriguing even. 

Azriel shakes his head from the thought of you. Lately his head has been filed with thoughts of you. Anything he did or said, he would always think, “what would Reader say? How would she react?” He would imagine different scenarios of you getting upset at him or throwing a sly remark his way. It perplexes Azriel that you have been taking over his mind, and it aggravated him.

That is it for chapter 2! Hope you enjoyed it! So glad I finally brought Azriel into the story. As you guys can see by the amount of words I have, I had to delay Reader's and Azriel's interaction with one another by one more chapter. Sorry! :( But man don't they hate each other so much? Gosh, just can't keep each other out of their own heads! Well anyway, that is all! If you want to be added to the taglist please leave a comment and I will add you! I hope I did the taglist correctly I have never done one before so if someone can give me advice on how to do one properly that would be great because Google did not help at all. P.S. Just to let you guys know I will gone for vacation for about a week, I can't promise you guys anything but I will try to write what I can so that when I come back I can finish it up the next chapter as soon as possible and post it for you guys. I hate that I will have to keep y'all waiting. But until then take care! :)

taglist:

@aehllitas-blog @horneybeach1 @cleverzonkwombatsludge

#acotar #acotar fanfiction #azriel x reader #azriel #azriel x you #azriel shadowsinger #azriel acotar #pro elain #nesta archeron #cassian acotar #cassian #a court of thorns and roses #elain archeron #acowar #female reader #weirdofunfic #weirdofun #music inspired #shower thoughts

[felinefractious]

So my grandmother has told me she used to breed siamese cats. I don't know how well bred they were, because she stopped long before I was born, but she's talked about it. One of her stories was that one litter had each kitten a different shade of siamese (chocolate, flame, lilac, blue). I was wondering how,,,,plausible this might be? Or how rare? Not that I don't believe her, I just have no idea how the genetics might've worked on that. Wish I knew what color she said the mama was, idk if that would help at all

If we assume all of the kittens had the same parents - it is possible for one litter to have different fathers, but that complicates things so we’ll leaving it out of our hypothetical - the dam had to have been a tortoiseshell or dilute tortoiseshell and the sire couldn’t be red or cream.

We’ll assume the flame/red was a male, he can get that from the tortie queen so we’re putting him aside because he isn’t further relevant.

The blue, chocolate and lilac could be male or female.

One parent had to be black/black tortie or blue/blue tortie but both could be. The other parent could he chocolate or lilac, but both parents can’t be dilute.

Dilute is a recessive gene so neither parent may display it but can still produce dilute offspring if they carry the gene, and one parent could be dilute (blue/lilac) but not both.

Chocolate/lilac is recessive to black/blue so similarly neither parent might be chocolate/lilac but can still produce offspring in these colors if both parents carry it. Again one could be chocolate/lilac but not both.

Tortie dam x Black sire

Tortie dam x Blue sire

Tortie dam x Chocolate sire

Tortie dam x Lilac sire

Blue Tortie dam x Black sire

Blue Tortie dam x Chocolate sire

Chocolate Tortie dam x Black sire

Chocolate Tortie dam x Blue sire

Lilac Tortie dam x Black Sire

WAIT, I’m removing the little flame point from where I set them down to the side. If this flame point is a girl and the other three are boys…

Tortie dam x Flame sire (gen. black/chocolate)

Tortie dam x Cream sire (gen. blue/lilac)

Blue Tortie dam x Flame sire (gen. black/choc)

Chocolate Tortie dam x Flame sire (gen. black)

Chocolate Tortie dam x Cream sire (gen. blue)

Lilac Tortie dam x Flame sire (gen. black)

I think these are all valid combinations but I’m tired and could have made a mistake. As for the probability of getting a chocolate, a lilac, a blue and a flame… that’s a math question.

Math questions go to @amber-tortoiseshell.

#anonymous #asks

[bookishdaze]

Here's why a potential "love story" between Mae and Noa, whether explicit or simply implied, may not be such a terrible idea.

Why? Because Shakespeare told me so, that's why.

"When in doubt, it's from Shakespeare....or the Bible." At least according to a book I had to read for high school, lol.

The biblical references in Caesar's trilogy have been pointed out multiple times already, and these movies have also been described as Shakespearean tragedies. So I thought, 'ok, what kind of Shakespearean tragedy will we have this time around?'

I'm first gonna start off with Hamlet in the Caesar trilogy. I'm also gonna mention other popular movies that are based on Shakespeare's plays. Not necessarily because it's concrete proof that this is what will happen in future POTA movies. This is me simply picking up certain storytelling beats and patterns I've noticed in some of my favorite movies.

It's not 100% the same, but there are some similarities. Also, this isn't anything new. Many have pointed this out before, but I love talking about this stuff!

The Lion King, Black Panther, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes are loosely based on Hamlet. A king or rightful heir is killed. Usually by an evil uncle, cousin, or family member. For some reason this always results in them falling off a very high cliff.

Everyone thinks they're dead, the evil relative takes power, and everything kinda sucks. There is not enough food in the Pride Lands under Scar's rule. Killmonger burns the heart-shaped herbs. Koba leads the apes to war against the humans.

The rightful ruler spends time in exile, recovering from their wounds and trauma. They might even get a visit or have a recollection of their dead father.

Then the rightful ruler comes back from the dead, challenges the usurper, and regains their rightful place upon the throne.

Now lets take a look at their sequels.

The Lion King 2 and Wakanda Forever share some similarities. They both follow another one of Shakespeare's popular plays, Romeo and Juliet.

Like the Montagues and Capulets, we have two rival kingdoms in both movies. We got the Pridelanders and the Outsiders. We also got the Wakandans and Talokanils.

The two heirs/rulers from both kingdoms meet. They hate and don't trust each other at first, but then they start to have compassion for the other. In Kiara and Kovu's case, they fall in love. Namor and Shuri don't fall in love, but after Namor shows her his underwater kingdom and what he has to protect, she softens and begins to understand him more. (They even got the whole Hades and Persephone thing going on, who are a couple in Greek mythology, by the way).

There are losses on both sides. Kovu's brother was killed while going after Simba. One of Namor's people was killed when Shuri was rescued by Nakia, and Shuri's mother, Queen Ramonda, died after Namor's attack on Wakanda. (Starts nervously eyeing Anaya here...)

These losses make things worse, by the way.

In the end, both pairs are able to bring the fighting between their people to a stop. The Outsiders are welcomed into Simba's pride. The Wakandans and Talokanils stop fighting after seeing their leaders return together.

Maybe something similar like this will happen with Noa and Mae. While I'm all for a good romance, it may end up being more like Namor and Shuri's case. There's something there. The tropes are present, but they don't fall in love. (At least not yet. Please Ryan Coogler, give me Nashuri endgame in Black Panther 3, hehe).

This is just a theory, by the way. This doesn't have to happen, but I just think it'd be neat. There would be differences though. What those differences would be, idk, but whatever happens in the next one, I can't wait!

"But but.... aren't you forgetting something?"

What's that?

"Don't they...ya know...both die at the end?"

Besides, they don't have to die. Things can be a little more hopeful for our two heroes 🙈

#planet of the apes #kingdom of the planet of the apes #pota #kotpota #planetoftheapes #kingdomoftheplanetoftheapes #mae pota #noa pota #maenoa #noamae #nomae #nashuri #namor x shuri #seaprincess #mcu namor #princess shuri #the lion king #kiara and kovu #the lion king 2 #black panther

[042502]

☆༉ — CHRIS STURNIOLO. The unwritten rule.

about. Everyone knows the rule, don't fall in love with your best friend's boyfriend.

author's note: This is the chapter 4, I hope it sounds interesting to you. My first language is not English, you will read this under this warning. m.list

"You really don't have to take me home," I tell him once we were outside.

"Is there something wrong with my car?" He says, looking at me, and I start to say "no" and then I see him smiling.

"It's horrible," I say once I'm inside the car. “For starters, it's not orange like the one you've promised me for so long and I'm sure I'll never actually have it, and on the other hand. Where are the dents? How can you not drive a car that doesn't have dents that mean your mother has been distracted by thinking about tortillas and pizza with bean sauce?”

"Pizza with bean sauce?"

"Yup" I look out the window. “After my mother scraped the side at the grocery store while parking, she wrote down her recipe for Mexican tortilla pizza. Look, all contest recipes have a twist. Or at least the winners have them, according to my mother. And she knows a lot about contests... Well, you know. Her thing.”

"She's done great things. I even remember those turtle cookies she made for your eighth birthday,” he recalled.

"Those things are hard to forget when someone's mother creates a river of chocolate sauce and makes everyone wait to eat while she creates the turtles in her home" he mentioned. “Worst birthday party ever.”

“No way,” Chris laughs. “That was really cute.”

"Making people wait to eat cookies and then saying there's no cake is not nice. I think people took their gifts and left."

“Well, I can get over that,” she looked at him. “I had to wear that brace on my tenth birthday.”

"You did not do it!" accused him.

He nods. "If I took them, oh hey, my sketch pad is pointed your way. We turn a corner and it slides off the dashboard and into my lap."

"Do you drive and draw?" She pointed out waving a finger at him, it feels so good to do this, to talk and to be flirting. I know, but it's just a little. He smiles, his teeth shining as he drives down the dark streets, referring to my house. "I'm trying to knock out some dents and improvise the look of the car."

He laughed and picked up the drawing pad. “Are you still doing those pencil drawings like last year?”

"Do you remember that?"

I do, and I wonder if I shouldn't still know that he had a bunch of his drawings presented and displayed at Dad's school last year. I looked at them and said I liked it when we ended up standing in the lunch line at the same time, but that was last year, and as a person not interested in it, can I admit to remembering that?

I doubt it.

I put the drawing pad back in the drawer. “You have some drawings at school, remember? Dad always drags mom and me to look at those things.”

"Yes," he says. "They were mine. You probably don't remember, but you told me last year that you liked them, and I thought, well, that was really nice of you.”

He remembers it!

I join my fingers together trying to stop myself from shaking. That wouldn't look very good. “So, you still do things like that?”

"Yes, I only made these series of hands" he talks about the drawings. “I found all these photos of my grandparents; My grandmother played the piano and my grandfather the violin, and their hands when they are playing are amazing. Just... It's like they talk to them, like I can listen to the music and want to try to show that." clears his throat. “Sorry, I know it's boring.”

I shake my head in denial. "It is not. I wish I could draw, but a straight line is all I can get.”

"What about those cubes you make in class?" It took me by surprise that he knows that. Especially since we haven't been together for a long time.

"Okay, I can draw cubes" I raise my arms feigning excitement. “Maybe I should quit school. You could travel around the world drawing cubes on things like bridges or benches. My parents could use my college money for savings. They would love that.”

He laughs again.

"Maybe you can get a start at home. Draw cubes in your driveway or something."

"Wait, are we here yet?" I noticed that we were already in front of my house "I mean, thank you for bringing me home."

"It was fun," I give him one more look before he goes back to the party, with my best friend, he's looking at me like... Well, like he wanted to look at me.

As if he likes what he sees, and he is smiling his eyes turn darker. I just nod mutely, blindly, then fumble for the door handle, trying to look away and still not being able to.

"Ada” He names me, softly, almost hesitantly, my heart beating strongly and this happens when you want someone you can't have. Loving someone you shouldn't even look at.

This is wrong, so wrong, to be here, but longing eats away at me until it is all that I am, until I am a trembling waterfall swaying toward it. I hear the soft, slow hiss of my seat belt as it extends, the faint echo hammering in my head, pulsing in my fingers and my feet, roaring in my ears, and he is so close.

And then we kissed. In a vast universe, an eternity of his mouth moving gently against mine, a slow explosion that makes my insides light up, and I want to get lost in this, in him, and never return.

His seatbelt creaks as he leans closer, one hand touching my head, and he heard me breathing, I hear him breathing. The two of us, just the two of us, except that shouldn't be it.

He is Anna's boyfriend, my best friend.

"Chris” My voice comes out like a ball scraping the aluminum, and he rests his forehead against mine. His fingers are still touching my hair. I can feel them shaking.

"Ada” he says again, and there's so much sweetness in his voice, in him, and I've tasted it. I want to do it again and again.

"I'm sorry" I apologized, he started to shake his head sideways, his hair so soft against my skin, his forehead still touching mine, and my heart screaming that I'm not completely sorry and that maybe he isn't either.

"I didn't mean to" His voice is calm, and no, of course he didn't mean to. He didn't mean for this to happen. He didn't mean for us to kiss.

He has Anna.

"Alright" I could barely speak, and me pulled me up and smiled that smile I use when Anna's boyfriends come to me, the smile that says I'll listen and understand because that's what I do. “I know things are a little weird between you and Anna right now, and the thing is, Anna thinks you're mad at her.” Then I remind myself that I have a best friend, that this is her boyfriend. “I know you're not mad, but she's just…” he swallowed. “She's really in love with you and she likes you a lot.”

Chris looks away from me at that moment, his gaze now fixed on the windshield over the dark front yard.

"I'm not..." he lets out a heavy sigh. “I’m not mad at her, I just… Ada, I really didn’t mean to…” I cut him off.

"I know" I hastened to say, I didn't want him to keep talking about this. I don't want to hear what comes after to "I really didn't mean to...", especially when you've said it twice.

I don't want to hear that this was a mistake, even though it wasn't. Not for me.

"Thank you again" I get out of the car, close the car door and walk towards my house without looking back.

I won't watch him go, I'm shaking. It's horrible to get what you wanted so much when you know you shouldn't.

I was happy to be able to talk to him, about this kiss, about tonight at the party. He mentioned last week, and a moment I've wanted to forget. But I haven't been able to do it.

Here's the moment that's stuck in my head, the one he talked about at the party.

Maybe it was nothing, but I was still thinking about it. I had been thinking about that. Last Thursday, I went to Anna's party to drop off a bunch of clothes she had left at my house. Mom had washed her and I took her out of my car, checking before the doorbell rang that Anna's mom wasn't home.

"Hey," Anna spoke to me, opening the door for me and smiling when she noticed her clean clothes in my hands.

"Your clothes washed, your majesty."

“I love your mom,” he smiled at me. “And you too, but you already know that. Come on in.”

"I don't want to bother you," Anna shook her head.

"Don't worry, Mom's at work. At least have a Pepsi or something. I did the shopping, so there's more to drink than the secret old diet."

"Okay," I walked inside the house, and saw Chris sitting in the living room on the couch. "Oh, I didn’t know… I didn’t see Chris’ car, I should go.”

"Because?" Anna asks me. “We’re just hanging out.”

Then I realized there were more people in the room too. Sonia, Mery, and Taylor were there, they were the ones Anna did a presentation with every year and they were all holding their scripts, looking at me with disgust.

"I'm sorry," I apologize.

"No, it's good that you're here. You can hang out with Chris because he's totally bored, but he's being too nice to say so. Also, he has to take everyone home, I promised I would do it after everyone did their presentation. And as for not seeing the car… Well, I had it parked down the street, so I won’t have to go look for it.”

And before I knew it, I was having a beer sitting next to Chris while everyone was talking except him and of course me.

Anna, Sonia, Mery, and Taylor went out to the terrace to make a scene.

"Get out! This is the kind of set we should order!" Mery said her line.

“I'm sorry,” I spoke first. “I didn't know... I thought Anna was alone.”

"I told her I wanted to talk when I came to visit her tonight and the next thing I know I'm in the room with you."

"I'm sorry," I apologized again, it was the thousandth time I had said it to him since what happened.

"No, I didn't mean that, it's nice sitting with you. That's what I mean, you know what I mean."

“Making the best of a bad situation?” I asked smiling.

"No” He was staring at me and I wanted to look away from his penetrating eyes, he was too attractive, but I couldn't look away, I had to look at him because I spent a lot of time convincing myself that I wasn't scared, that I was acting like he was just another guy. “I mean it's nice to be around actually, I don't mind being with you at all. I like it."

"Yeah, me too," I admit, still smiling and trying not to read into anything he said. He was stupid doing that and he knew it. I also knew I should stand up and leave, but I didn't move.

"Unless I'm getting ready to throw up over the railing of a boat, right?" and I automatically stopped thinking about leaving.

"Do you remember that?"

"It was only last year," he said as if it were an exaggeration.

"I know," my voice came out too firm, too calm, but inside I was shaking.

"I didn't know boats could make people this sick," he recalled. “I swear the only thing that kept me from going overboard was that I was talking to you. How come you never got those sneakers full of dots?”

Oh wow, he remembered, he really remembered.

"I did it," he said. “No, they didn't look like I thought they would. They looked like a rash. In shoes, it wasn't a pretty thing, I can't believe you heard me babbling about stitches when you were feeling so bad.”

"Are you kidding me? You were the best thing about that trip."

"The best?" I shouldn't have asked that, there was silence. It was strangely tense in a way that made my toes curl. “Second best, you mean” I break the silence again. To stop myself from looking at it and desiring it. “Getting out of the boat had to be the first.”

"Sonia, you have to relax when you dance with Taylor. Move your hips a little. Yeah, like... Okay, not that much."

“You should go practice with them,” Chris shakes his head. “Teach Sonia how to dance properly.”

"I don't want to humiliate her," he joked, stood up and did a little dance.

Chris went to some contemporary dance classes when we were kids.

"Believe me that's what you would do," he smiled as he watched their little dance. "You dance great."

"Do you remember when I asked you to that dance in eighth grade? I bet you're glad you got rid of that night” Why does he suddenly mention that?

"No, I would have loved it, I…” My voice slowly faded, hearing what I was saying. “It was better that you freed yourself, because... Well, I've seen my eighth grade photo. You've seen it too. Not at all pretty.”

He shook his head. “No, I wanted to go with you.”

And then the silence came again, that silence and I realized how close we were. How easy it was to sit with him. Smiling, he talked to him. And then I heard Anna laugh.

"I know, Chris is great. We've been together for almost two months," I heard Anna say.

"I better go, congratulations on being almost two months old, I remember the night they started dating and it's great, great!"

"Ada” He stood up, and I just left him alone in the room.

"See you later!" I went out to the terrace, I told Anna I had to go and I hugged her, then I drove home and told myself that all the things I had thought were just that. Things I only thought about and nothing more. But now, tonight has happened, and even though I know it's Anna's return, I still want it.

I didn't sleep much, alternating between excitement and terror, also half expecting Anna to come, I don't know what I would do if I knew. Would Chris have told him? I knew he wouldn't make it sound like I had kissed him, I wasn't that kind of guy, but how would you tell your girlfriend that you and her best friend had kissed in a way that didn't sound like it was?

I finally fell asleep after the sun came up, I was tired. The kiss almost looked like a dream now.

But it wasn't, it was real and it had happened. Anna came as I went downstairs to find Mom preparing her chocolate candies, and putting the food on a plate.

"What's wrong with you?" Anna asked me when I went to open the door. “You look terrible.”

"I'm just tired," I reply.

He was looking at me, it was making me shake inside. I knew it, she knew it.

"Well, can I come in?" I asked myself and then I realized that he was still blocking his way. I nodded.

I walk inside the house, sniffing the air.

"It smells like food," he mentioned with great happiness while clapping his hands, he ran towards the kitchen. "Hello," he greeted my mother.

"Look at you! I think you get prettier every day," my mother used to praise Anna a lot. "Do you want some candy?" He stretched out his arms offering him a sweet.

Anna took it and sat at the kitchen table.

"Where is the teacher?" I asked myself this time, I limited myself to pointing my head to the room, where I understood that he was there.

"What was Anna waiting for? Why is she acting so normal? ”

"How about?" She offered me the plate where she used to place the sweets she made herself.

"Great" she smiled at him as she broke one of the sweets and ate it. I shook my head scared and tense, I could feel the muscles in my legs shaking.

"Don't you think they need a little more green on the sides, maybe to enhance the sweets? Color is always good, Or maybe some orange in the base?” my mom continued talking.

How was I supposed to do this? How could she be old Ada, boring Ada when Anna knew it and stayed still for some reason?

I glance at Anna, but she was staring at the plate as if she was thinking about it now. I could not do it.

"It looks like something out of a cookbook," she smiled at my mom. "Really professional," she was excited, and went to show her sweets to dad.

Then Anna saw me again and then she finally spoke to me.

"Can we go upstairs?" I nodded, I could feel my stomach churning with guilt.

I followed her up with my vision lost in confusion and the sugar of the candy. In my room, Anna walked over to my bed and sat down to look at me.

"What's going on with Chris?" I was surprised. "No that's it" then I was confused between my thoughts and my words.

"What?" She wasn't supposed to say that.

"What's wrong with Chris?" She repeats. “He didn't say anything to me last night about being upset with me, or about his hair. But that's not a big problem. Have you talked to him these days?”

“Yes” I have to tell her then “Anna, I really have to tell you.”

"Well, at least you said something," he said and then stood up and began to move his hair. When she did it I noticed a mark on her neck, it was barely visible where her blouse ended.

"What's that?" He gave me a look that said.

"What do you mean?" like I couldn't see his neck, and of course Chris hadn't told him about the kiss.

He just returned to the party, saw her and realized how stupid he had been, then he kissed her and left that mark on her neck. Something that marked her as his property. Property of Chris.

"Well, you're a little weird." Anna touches the mark on her neck. "Shit," she walked over to the mirror in my room and looked at the mark on her neck. “I thought this shirt would cover it. Do you have something to cover it with?” I shook my head. "Your mom?"

"Maybe" she sat on my bed carefree "Why do you want to cover it? Chris doesn’t mind that.”

But thanks to Anna's silence can tell me that something was not right.

"Anna?"

"Don't say it, okay? I know it was something really stupid, but Mike…”

"Mike?" She looks at me through the mirror and then turns around, crossing her arms, still keeping her gaze on me.

"Yes," she says, "but we were just dancing." She began to move her hands, a sign that she is nervous. “He started telling me how beautiful I looked, he hugged me and then he told me "let's go outside, it's hot here" and then we... We were there for a while” his voice had become low and he spoke very quickly.

"Did you break up with Chris?" I had a big mess in my head, I couldn't understand anything.

"No!" shout.

My heart stopped, they didn't finish.

"No? But you were with Mike."

"I made sure Chris didn't see the mark, okay? I told him to take me home and that's why I couldn't talk because I had a terrible headache. And he doesn't have to know about Mike and I, you know? I don't want to break up with him. I like it a lot, Ada, but we haven't been... You know, we haven't done much...”

"Haven't you guys fucked?"

"Yes, and I don't understand why" I roll my eyes. “At first I thought it was good that he wasn't always trying to get us to do things like that. But we have only kissed” he sighed and sat next to me on the mattress. “I think I like it.”

"What do you want me to say?"

""You are the one who is always in love with boys who don't love you."

Ouch, it was true though. The truth hurts, but soon the truth would hurt her too.

"Well, every guy who likes you always likes you more," I admit, it was a painful truth, but I couldn't let myself cry right now. “The thing is, you haven't been around to notice, I'm too good to ignore it now and the rest…” It wasn't the time, she only had two boys, Anna had only been with one of them. Phillies.

Last year, I liked Phillies, he was new and from England, and he wrote great short stories and I hadn't seen Anna when we were talking and she came over. I could tell there was something about Anna that made him immune to her, and I liked being the girl she loved.

And then the homecoming thing happened. Phillies asked me if I could go to the dance with him and even though he thought everyone said they hated him because the homecoming dance was incredibly stupid, It was stupid and unbelievable because you had to buy a good dress while you saw guys dressed in different jeans and t-shirts. It was all glamorous, but somehow good, incredible.

I was excited, I had gone to buy the dress with Anna, and not something used because the boy I was going with was someone who had dumped her, so I bought something incredible. I didn't look as good as Anna, sure, she bought that short, tight, red dress that even the saleswoman said "Wow" when she came out of the dressing room, but I looked pretty.

Or at least I thought it looked good. Philis had said I looked good when he picked me up, and again when we were dancing in the over-decorated gym with the music the school had played.

I was coming back from the bathroom, I see the two of them alone in a corner of the gym talking. I could see Anna, that red dress completely caught anyone's attention. It was definitely her with the Phillies.

"You know you're the sexy girl here tonight," he watched as he ran his hands under her arms. "Say you'll dance with me."

I stood there, paralyzed, watching Anna smile at her.

"Sexy? Me? Since when? What about Adi?"

"She's not sexy," he replied, making my eyes start to sting. It didn't take long for the tears to come. I was wondering if anything he had told me was real, then he noticed my presence by turning to look at me. "Ada" but he didn't come close he just left there.

Anna instead approached me, worried? "Ada?" my name fell from his lips, as if it was his fault that Philis liked me, not me.

I looked at her even with my eyes crystallized by tears, she looked so beautiful, so much so that I hated her.

I really hated her, in the most intense way I could feel. I hate my best friend.

I just ran from there, but Anna came after me. I was furious with Phillies and even with Anna, as if it were her fault that she was more beautiful than me. She didn't force Philis to tell her those things...

"I shouldn't have agreed to talk to him," said Anna, who was walking behind me, giving me a short distance. “I'm really sorry, Adi. I thought he wanted to talk about you. He seemed to like you a lot.”

"I thought it was like that, but it seems like she likes you more” she turned to me to see her upset.

Anna began to cry, and through tears she told me, “I'm really very sorry, please don't be upset, please don't hate me.”

I hugged her and we walked together to my house. Dad and Mom took us back to the dance, and Anna and I stayed up for four hours talking about how stupid Phillies was. It hurt horribly when I saw it at school, but over time it hurt less.

The only other boy I had ever liked was Chris. Anna knew about this, but. She believed it was a primary school thing, a forgotten thing. I didn't even know if I remembered it, but I did. And I still liked it. And we kiss...

"Hello, Ada, are you listening to me?" Anna waved a hand in front of my face. "I didn't mean that how it sounded. I just don't know what to do with Chris, how to keep him with me. And then the Mike thing" she rolled her eyes.

I would never kiss anyone else if I kissed Chris.

I shake my head, trying to erase that thought, and then Mom knocks on the door.

"I just wanted to see if you two needed anything."

"We're fine," I reply seriously.

"Well, if you need anything let me know."

"I love your parents," Anna whispered. “I wish they were mine.”

I ignored his comment and focused on the mark on his neck. I tried not to think about how I had Chris and still looked at someone else. I tried not to think about how his mouth felt on mine.

"Hey, my mom is taking me to see my dad today," his voice was discouraged. "Do you want to go with me?" She had her gaze on the window, I noticed how she played with some strands of her hair.

"Sure, I'll accompany you" I sigh and give him a hug.

"It'll be fun," she murmured, but we both knew it wouldn't be like that.

જ⁀➴ taglist. @l34n @jetaimevous @jnkvivi @loveyoumatthewbernard @d1tzy-bl0nde @laxbabe131147 @slut4chriss @dontellaf1lms @surniolozzzprincess @sturnlova @inlovewithchriss @whicked-hazlatwhore @mattsgirlsblog @nsjsnshey @always-reading

Author's note: If you want to be part of the taglist leave a comment below and I will add you. Thanks for reading, remember to like, share with your friends and leave a nice comment ^^

#﹙𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬. 𝐒﹚🦌 ， #੭ 🤍 ! 𝓈 #sturniolo triplets #chris sturniolo x you #chris smut #chris sturniolo #matt sturniolo #matt sturniolo x you #matt sturniolo x reader #christopher sturniolo #matt sturniolo smut #chris sturniolo fanfic #matt sturniolo fluff #matt sturniolo fanfiction #chris sturniolo fluff #nick sturniolo #chris sturniolo smut #chris sturniolo x reader #sturniolo #christopher owen sturniolo #chris sturniolo soft #christopher sturniolo x reader #matt sturniolo fanfic #matt sturniolo imagine #matthew bernard sturniolo #matthew sturniolo #sturniolo fanfic #nicolas sturniolo #sturniolo fluff #sturniolo imagine

[otomehonyaku]

Diabolik Lovers Lost Eden Stellaworth Tokuten Short Stories スペシャル特典小冊子 ☽ Ruki ver.

This short story booklet was part of the Stellaworth set for Lost Eden! Keep reading below the cut for Ruki's version. Yuma's, Kou's,and Azusa's are coming soon!

[Yuma's version] [Kou's version] [Azusa's version]

Special thanks to @karleksmumskladdkaka for providing the scans ♡⸜(˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

When I think about it, I have rarely been alone since those three became my brothers. It is not that we spent 24 hours a day in each other’s presence, but the fact that I had people to call family again after losing everything eased my loneliness.

I wonder if that’s the reason why I am still genuinely not used to not being in the pictures that my brothers send us from time to time, even though I don’t really want to admit it.

The one who’d made the suggestion after a while of living together was her.

“Why don’t we send them something back?”

And so the seed was planted.

“If I’m also thinking of sending them pictures, then they must be thinking the same thing at home,” she told me with a smile, “so I’m sure they’ll be happy if we do.”

I knew that she had a point, but there was a certain awkwardness to taking staged pictures with her and sending them to my brothers. I considered flatly rejecting the idea at first because I thought it was embarrassing, but I came around immediately when I remembered the way her face had brightened when she brought it up.

The two of us ran away from the human world. From Kou, Yuma, and Azusa. Ever since she and I started living together in a crumbling Eden, I have begun to realise something–I have become completely beguiled by her. Or, rather, I might have had a soft spot for her since the beginning, but lately, the moments when I dropped my guard around her have increased considerably. Of course, I cannot convince myself to tell her that.

It’s only natural when I consider all we have been through together. To stay behind in Eden even after the war ended, then, was nothing but my own selfish idea. She was under no obligation to join me.

Nevertheless, she has stayed with me all this time, and she has truly helped make the best out of every day. It’s simply impossible not to love her for that, even though I know she had wanted to be by my side from the beginning. 

In all honesty, I am happy. Maybe that’s what has turned me into such a softie, I thought, smiling wryly. I was loath to admit it, but the plain fact that I had found happiness with her was probably the reason why.

“Ruki… Don’t you want to take a picture?” She gazed at me a little nervously. Maybe she thought she had upset me because I had kept quiet.

“No, it’s a good idea. Like you said, I think Kou and the others would love that.”

“Let’s do it, then!”

“Yes, let’s.”

Before I had even finished speaking, she darted out of the room to get the camera. As I watched her run off, I realised my approval might have pleased her more than it would my brothers. My expression inadvertently softened at the thought.

☽

She told me the camera was a gift from Azusa. Come to think of it, the photo album that my brothers had given me a little while ago had also been Azusa’s idea.

“Smile!”

“...Wait.”

I grasped her hand before she could click the shutter.

“What’s the fun in a picture of me by myself? Get over here.”

She hesitated a little, making some foolish suggestions on how we should take our picture, but I ignored her and snaked an arm around her waist. Holding her close to me would make things much easier.

“This way, you’ll be in the frame too,” I whispered into her ear. 

Her shoulders twitched a little as she held her breath, and her ears started to redden. What a hopeless girl. I was sure this was not the side of her she wanted recorded on film for others to see.

If I truly cared for the picture for my brothers, I would have stopped there. However, the feeling of her warm body in my arms was too tempting. I decided to tease her a little more. I leaned down to whisper in her ear again, closer than before. 

“Save that face for later tonight.”

Her voice quivered as she whispered my name in response... 

Oh, this was bad. I wish I could say that I truly intended to leave it at teasing, but my body was acting on its own.

Sorry, Kou, Yuma, Azusa–you will have to wait for the picture a little longer.

However, when she understood that I wanted to take the camera from her, she spoke.

“But… we really are going to send them a picture, right?” So, let’s actually take a proper picture. Her unspoken words lingered in the air. She had gotten more perceptive recently.

“...Of course. Let’s continue this tonight, then.”

I let out a heavy sigh. 

I really had been going soft, but it could not be helped. Especially not around my lovely wife.

#I'll do the Kou/Azusa ones too! the other ones maybe later #i'm going to focus on translating the novelization first after this #diabolik lovers translation #diabolik lovers translations #dialovers #diabolik lovers #diabolik lovers lost eden #lost eden #mukami yuma #mukami ruki #ruki mukami #yuma mukami #otomehonyaku #my translations

[plussizefantasia]

Horrible People

Tony Stark x Plus Size!f!Reader

Word Count: 3.2K

Warnings: Cyberbullying, allusions to a panic attack

Request: i just noticed you wrote for marvel and better off you wrote for tony. I was hoping you could write me a story about tony meeting a bigger girl and starting to date her and he finds out someone made fun of her in the tabloids and she gets insecure but he makes her feel positive again? it would mean alot really.

@lilacprincessofrecovery Happy Birthday! I wrote this really fast for you so I hope you enjoy it! Have a great day lovely!

Never in your life did you think you’d be walking the carpet at the MET Gala. Never mind the fact that tickets were 75k each and that was more than you made in a year, you weren’t on any kind of list that might’ve warranted an invitation. But Tony was.

Your wonderful and loving boyfriend of a year, Tony Stark, was definitely the kind of person that got an invite to the most exclusive event of the year. And because he loved you and knew that this was something you’d enjoy, he’d told his assistant to send an RSVP to Anna and to reach out to any designers who wanted to work with him. 

The process of getting fitted for your dress was a unique one, Tony wanted you to be comfortable so he had asked the designer to meet with the two of you at his home in Malibu. That meant that you were wildly uncomfortable, standing in a mockup of a dress that was more luxurious and ostentatious than anything you owned, but at least you were doing it in your living room. The entire process from consultation to fitting to actually getting ready the day of was about six months, you had no idea that it took that long to get this kind of thing ready but you weren’t exactly surprised.

Tony had insisted that the two of you get ready in the same hotel room, mostly so that he could shower you in compliments all day.

“Look at you Pretty Girl, you look gorgeous.”

“Damn Baby, that color looks really good on you.”

“Are you sure we have to go? I could spend all night staring at you and have way more fun.” That one earned him a glare from you followed by, “Tony… I’ve been getting ready for three hours already. We’re going.” 

Tony’s compliments really worked though, you felt amazing and the nerves that you had woken up with had dissipated at his relentless teasing and flirting throughout the day. Alas, they came back with a vengeance when it was time to actually leave for the carpet. Tony had escorted you down to the lobby where the two of you were told to wait while Happy and the rest of the security team established a path through the mix of fans and paparazzi that were crowded in front of the hotel entrance. When you were given the go-ahead, Tony placed his hand in the middle of your back and curled you into his side. He took measured but quick steps to get you into the car as soon as possible, not stopping for a picture or autographs even if the crowd was yelling for his attention.

Once you were seated in the back of the black town car, Tony kissed the back of your hand. 

“That was the worst of it, Darling, from now everything will be smooth sailing.”

You didn’t know how he thought that walking up a long ass flight of stairs in the most elaborate dress you’ve ever worn while being blinded by flashes of cameras could be considered ‘smooth sailing’ but you knew that with Tony by your side nothing could really go that wrong. 

Stepping out of the car and into the entrance of the event was like stepping into another world, people a lot more famous than you were everywhere, all dressed to the nines and laughing while talking to each other.

Tony’s hand in yours was grounding, and so was the little kiss that he gently placed on the side of your head, being mindful of the time and energy that went into your hair and makeup for the evening.

Eventually, it was your turn to walk the carpet. You were being lectured by a woman in a simpler black dress with a headset. Telling you that you had to walk fast enough to keep pace but not too fast that you run into the person ahead of you. She told you that everyone had time to stop for one interview and no time to dilly dally or you’d throw off the rhythm of the whole event.

You tried your best to make sure that no terror was showing on your face when you and Tony took your first steps out of the corral and onto the carpet. Immediately you were blinded by flashes and had to stop yourself from flinching. Meanwhile Tony looked like he was in his element, posing effortlessly in his themed suit all while never removing his hand from your body. 

He subtly pushed you forward and made eye contact with you the man you didn’t move forward. He raised an eyebrow at you, “you okay?” His expression asked.

He leaned closer to you and whispered with his face turned away from the cameras, “One word and we go home, no questions asked.” 

The warmth that spread across your face was thankfully covered thanks to the masterful makeup that had been applied. Tony’s words did the trick though. And with much more confidence than you had just moments before you stepped forward and saunter to the next spot that you had been told to go stand at.

A smirk spread across Tony’s face and he followed your lead, strutting along behind you and cheesing for the cameras. 

After that, it really was smooth sailing. You and Tony took pictures together and apart, you walked the carpet flawlessly and he couldn’t have been prouder. You had a great evening, and you met some people that you five years ago would’ve screamed cried, and thrown up at the prospect of meeting let alone having an actual conversation with. 

Once the main event had died down and most of the attendees were either heading home or to some after-party or another you and Tony had decided to call it quits as well, after all, he might’ve been a billionaire genius ex-playboy philanthropist but you were a normal human being and needed to be at work the day after. 

The two of you were still immaculately dressed when he leaned over in the car with his signature mischievous grin, “Hey Pretty Girl, are you hungry?”

“What?” You laughed in reply

“Are you hungry?” He asked again his smirk not faltering.

“We can order room services when we get back to the hotel, Tony.”

“Or Sweetheart, hear me out. We could go get burgers. I know this great hole-in-the-wall spot and it’s only five minutes away.”

“Tony, neither of us is exactly dressed for hole-in-the-wall right now.”

“Who cares? I don’t, I’m hungry and I want to share a burger with my amazing and sexy girlfriend and a great place that I know. The only thing keeping me from doing that is her being hesitant.”

“You're being pushy you know that? But sure, let’s go get burgers.”

“Happy, change the course please, let’s go to Mc’Rory’s for a burger and a drink,” Tony called up to his forehead of security who had assigned himself and your driver for the evening.

“Want to stop at the hotel first boss?” Happy raised a single brow and made eye contact with Tony through the rearview mirror.

“Nope, just head straight there we’re hungry.”

“Oh-Kay.” Happy replied. 

The place was a literal hole in the wall, after the space needed for the kitchen where there was only room for two tables, and You and Tony took up one while you waited for your orders to be done, Happy was sitting at the other, also waiting for his food but wanting to give the two of you some space.

“So Honey, did you have fun?” Tony asked

“I don’t know if fun is the word but I had a good time, I definitely don’t want to come back though.”

“Why not? I get invited every year I just have never had a reason to go before now.”

“What new and compelling reason did you have for this year?” You chuckled.

“I had a gorgeous date to go with who I wanted to show off.” He looked into your eyes and you were once again struck with how much love you had for this man and how much love he had for you. The world had not been kind to Tony Stark but you would spend the rest of your life trying to make it up to him.

“Well shucks, I guess I had a pretty swell date too.” 

“You sound like you’ve been spending too much time with Mr. Righteous and his Boy Wonder.”

“I wouldn’t say that Bucky is Boy Wonder more like a broodier and more cyborg version of Steve.”

“And why are we talking about those dinosaurs?”

“You brought them up!”

“And now I’m changing the topic, did you get a chance to read through the article I sent you the other day?” 

The two of you continued talking until your orders were placed at the table between the two of you. At which point both of you realized that it had been something like nine hours since either of you had anything decent or filling to eat and the conversation ended while you both pretty much inhaled your dinner.

You must’ve looked like quite the pair. Both of you dressed the way you were, in corresponding outfits covered in flora and fauna motifs while devoting a burger in a red booth. It was defined top ten on your surrealist moments' lists which has gotten significantly longer since you started dating Tony, but you wouldn’t have it any other way. 

Your night ended very similarly to how it started. With Tony showering you with compliments in a hotel room, only this time you weren’t getting all dolled up. This time you were barefaced with your hair mussed up and comfy pjs covering your body. It made your heart flutter that Tony still thought you were beautiful even when you were dressed down to your most basic. There was no makeup trickery or shapewear smoothing your body at that moment, just you and all your imperfections, and Tony looked at them and saw nothing but beauty. 

You crawled into the large bed and waited for him to turn off the lights and join you. He played down only seconds after you and pulled you so that you were halfway on top of him, your head tucked nicely into the dip of his neck.

“I really love you, you know that?” You whispered into the dark of the room.

“I love you too, so much Angel.”

The two of you fell asleep within minutes.

The next morning you were awoken to the buzzing of your phone against the wood of the nightstand, Tony’s phone vibrating just as viciously on his side of the bed. 

You figured that it was pictures of the two of you groom last night and opened your phone to see all the high-quality images that were being posted everywhere of the two of you on the carpet. And you weren’t wrong, the images blowing up were of the two of you and they were from last night but they weren’t on the carpet. Apparently you and Tony had been pretty lax in your observation skills last night or you would’ve noticed the person taking your pictures outside of the burger joint. Because there it was, all over your phone. Pictures of you and Tony still in your fancy outfits pigging out on burgers with various captions, each more vicious than the last. 

The one that really caught you off guard was on some celeb gossip page, “Tony Stark takes unknown to Met Gala: he can do better” It wasn’t the worst one there was by far. There were all kinds of ribs being made about your size, about the way you ate, about everything. It wasn’t until someone said the words that were always floating around in the back of your mind out loud that you really began to fall apart. 

It was your gasping breaths that woke Tony up. He noticed you sitting upright in the bed next to him, phone in hand and tears streaming down your face.

“Woah, woah baby what’s going on? What’s wrong?!” He shot up too, getting on your level. You only handed him the phone unable to get any words out.

He looked briefly at the images across the screen at first not seeing the problem. It was a cute picture, very ‘the two of you’ to be dressed up and eating burgers in a dive like that but when he read the caption he saw red. 

Your choked sob brought him back from the brink of rage but he filed the feeling away for later, he’d track down whoever had written the nasty words, the cameraman, the publisher. Anyone and everyone involved in making you cry would be paying for it later.

He pulled you into his arms and winced when you started to cry harder. As much as he wanted to get to the bottom of it you weren’t in a place to talk yet. He just had to take care of you until you were. 

It was difficult marching the two of you out of bed without letting go of you but he managed, all the while smoothing a hand up and down your back and whispering praises into your head.

“Doing so good Pretty Girl, breathe, yeah just like that.”

“It’s gonna be okay, we’ll talk in a little bit.”

“Thats it, you’re doing so well.”

He guided you to the shower and turned the water to a warm temperature, not wanting to force you to feel anything too harsh at the moment.

Slowly and step by step he walked through your morning routine, washing your hair for you and helping you with your face routine. 

When he looked into your eyes and saw a daft tenderness he knew that you were going to be okay, the both of you. 

Even if he knew that it would make you upset he knew that the two of you needed to talk about everything, getting it out into the open was the only way that it wouldn’t come back to bite you later. 

“Okay, Darling. I’m going to go get breakfast for us, you take your time getting dressed and when I come back we can eat and talk okay?”

You nodded, “Okay.” He hated how he could still hear the sadness in your voice but he pushed a kiss to your lips and grabbed his phone before making his exit. All you heard as he left was Tony on the phone, “Hap- I got a job for you” and the door was closed.

You let yourself breathe for just a moment longer before moving to do as Tony said, and getting dressed before sitting back down in the middle of the bed. You didn’t dare pick your phone back up, just sitting in silence until he walked back through the door holding a brown bag.

“I got breakfast burritos from that brunch place down the street okay?”

“Yeah. Sounds good.” You didn’t think you’d actually be able to eat anything.  

There was a slightly tense silence between the two of you for a few moments as Tony gave you your food and then sat down across from you with his.

“I’m sorry” you both blurted out at the same time.

“Woah, sweetheart what are you sorry for?”

“I don’t know… for not being enough, for being too much. Take your pick.” 

“Okay none of that pretty girl, you are none of those things you are just right, you are absolutely perfect let’s get that straight right now.”

“But- you saw-“

“Nug-uh what I saw was some random person who doesn’t know either of us, spewing hate behind a screen. I saw horrible people being horrible for no reason and that is not your fault Baby.”

“I’m still sorry, I saw how mad you were, I didn’t mean to make you upset.”

“You didn’t make me upset at all Babe, none of how I was feeling this morning was your fault okay? None of it.”

“Well- wait. Did you say you were sorry? Why the hell are you sorry?”

“I should’ve been watching better last night. I was just so focused on you and how relaxed I was feeling with you that I didn’t notice that asshole following us or taking our picture.”

“Tony. Thousands of people took our picture yesterday, you couldn’t have protected me even if you wanted to. I wanted to go remember?”

“You said you had a good time last night. Do you feel any different now?” The question caught you off guard. 

“Well-no. I still had a really good time. I always have a good time when we’re together.”

“Then why does it matter what strangers on the internet think of us?”

“I mean- don’t you care that people think-“

“I’m gonna stop you right there. The answer is no. I don’t care what people think, not anymore. Not since I met you. You have this uncanny ability to make me feel like nobody in the world but us matters.”

“What if they’re right though?” You asked in a quiet voice.

“Right about what Baby?”

“What if you can do better? What if one day you wake up and realize that you’re settling.”

“There is not a universe out there where me being with you is settling. You’re it for me Sweetheart. You're all I’ve got, the light of my life. The yin to my yang, the peanut butter to my jelly, the wasabi to my peas.”

“You made that last one up.” You let out a soft laugh.

“Doesn’t make it any less true.”

“No, I suppose it doesn’t.”

You both smiled stupidly at each other.

“Hey Tony?” You asked.

“Yeah, Pretty Girl?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, and so do they.”

You’re face adopted a look of confusion as Tony handed you his phone. On his screen was a couple of pictures he had posted of the two of you from yesterday. Pictures of you getting ready. Of you making stupid faces at him while getting your hair done, of the two of you in the back of the car on the way to the Gala, and one of the most beautiful pictures you’ve ever seen of yourself. 

It’s a wide shot of the two of you, you’d just started walking up the stairs and Tony is two steps below you. In the photo, you’re looking back at him and have this gorgeous smile spread across your lips. Tony stands underneath you, adoration clear in his eyes as he reaches a hand up to meet your outstretched one.

It isn’t the beautiful pictures that catch your eyes though, it’s the millions of comments that the post has.

“Omg slay.”

“Get you someone who looks at you the way Tony looks at this goddess right here.”

“She looks so happy.

“They look so good together.”

“I can’t tell if I want to be here or want to be with her.”

That last one makes you laugh and you look up from the phone to see Tony looking at you with a soft smile on his face.

“So. Are we going back next year, if so I need to start looking for a designer that can one up this.”

“I’ll go anywhere with you as long as you keep looking at me like that.” You toss his phone back to him.

“I’ll look at you like that until the day I die, Gorgeous. You deserve it.”

“Yeah, I kinda do.” 

#tony stark drabble #tony stark x reader #tony stark imagine #tony stark fluff #tony stark x plus size reader #tony stark x plussize! reader #marvel fanfiction #angst and fluff #plus size reader #plus size!reader #fanfic #x reader #requests open #requests wanted #angst and hurt/comfort #angst and feels

[yaut-jaknowit]

Aboard a communal ship with many different species (lots of humans though) A human fed up with her yautja partner always comparing her to yautja. Gets drunk at the bar and does karaoke to Human by Christina Perri. Prompting all the human at the bar to sing to lol

Am same anon that asked for the mechanic story with the trio of bad bloods. If it's okay with you, my color can be a blue diamond 🔷️

I'm Only Human

Pairings: Zaikeh (Female Yautja) x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 2986

Summary: With your patience stretched thin, you burst at the seems. That was the last time you could handle being compared to a Yautja. You are human. There's no ifs, ands, or buts about it. So, you take yourself to the nearest bar on the communal ship and drink away your problems. Your only three friends come to cheer you.

Author Note: Welcome back, Blue Diamond! I love your idea with the mechanic! It's been a huge hit. Thank you for nicknaming yourself. I can't wait to see what else you throw at me.

Masterlist

Ao3

Time in, time out. It’s the same thing every day. Despite the very fact you know you aren’t as strong or as mighty or as fit as the weakest of Yautjas, Zaikeh tells you this. Every. Single. Time. Can’t reach a bowl? A Yautja could. Can’t lift a box? A Yautja could. It’s grown old but the pain was fresh everything time she points out the difference.

At first, you tried to bring it to her attention that it wasn’t nice to say that to you. Yes, you know that you are incredibly weaker than her every sense of the word. Females were stronger, more intelligent than their male counterparts. While you are simply not.

The two points didn’t connect in Zaikeh’s mind. Each time, she would brush it off. Feelings and emotions for a Yautja aren’t as well developed compared to humans. They react more on instinct than what they feel. Unless that feeling is mating.

Your feet paused just shy of the front door of your shared quarters. Your hand rests on the door frame as you peeked over your shoulder at Zaikeh. The large, black female Yautja sat in the living room, on the floor. One of her many weapons in her lap, sharpening the blade.

“Hey Zai, I’m going over to A'jiadh’s,” you announced. A’jiadh was part of the trio alongside with Mai’tuiudh. The three of them have settled on this communal ship for the time being. Until an enforcer finds them and sends them on the run again. They’re famous for how well they invade and kill any enforcers their kind sends after them.

The black Yautja picked up her head and cocked her head to the side. “Why are you going over there?” she grunted then returned her attention to the weapon sharpening. Zai was meticulously about her cleaning of both her weapons and armor anytime they get dirtied. A'jiadh lacks this skill. Mai’tuiudh lies closer to Zaikeh than A'jiadh.

You could swear you had told her earlier in the week. “To hang out. He’s going to help me with some language practice and sparring.” While being on the run, it’s best to be prepared. This includes knowing how to fight off an enemy.

If you were to be captured by an enforcer, god only knows what they might do to you once learning you willingly live Bad Bloods.

Zaikeh hummed and inspected the sharpness of her blade. “Any Yautja would know how to fight by your age.” Your nails turn white as they press into the metal door frame. You refrained from speaking the retort that sat bitterly on your tongue. How does she not see the hurt in your eyes at her words?

“Well, I can still learn, can’t I?” The words came out harsher than you were aiming for. The months just building up to a point you couldn’t hold it back anymore. She just huffed and continued to perfect the blade a little more. And that hurt.

Once the first crack in the dam raced up the wall, there was no stopping it from spiderwebbing out.

The first sting of tears crowded your lash line. A lump began to grow in your throat. “I can’t take it anymore!” you shouted and spun on your heels to face who you thought would be the end.

Everyone has a boiling point. Where it spills over the edge and creates a bigger mess in the end.

“Why do you constantly compare me to other Yautjas?! I’m not like them. I’m not a Yautja. I’m not like you!” Tears poured down your face as the first of your sobs broke free. The dam crumbling in your hands, far too late to stop it. The water gushing and taking you within its storm. “I’m human. I don’t think you’ve realized this yet.”

All the pain in your voice was evident.

She raised her head in surprised when you first yelled at the top of your lungs. Your voice echoing back at you in the limited space. Her forest green eyes were focused on you now. Not missing the way you cried with a flare of anger and sorrow filling your scent.

“I’m only human, Zai,” you whimpered and drew back into yourself. Defeat washed over you. It weighed down your shoulders as you looked upon your mate with hurt. “I’m only human.”

Then, you about faced and scrambled out of your shared quarters. This life will never be the same afterwards. She’ll come after you in a bit, letting you calm down from your outburst. First though, before you could allow for that to happen, you were going to skip A’jiadh’s and head to the nearest bar. You needed something to wash down the pain of the afternoon.

Though the alien words rolled over your head, you could understand the country feeling it gave. Species of all different kinds mingled both at booths and tables and on the dance floor. You, on the other hand, found roost on the darkest corner, place to sulk. A heavy, strong drink resting on the wooden table before you.

Condensation builds up on the glass, creating a ring on the coaster. You picked up the drink and took a mouth of the throat burning liquid. A buzz was beginning to build up by this point. It wasn’t to the degree you wouldn’t remember the next morning, but you’re steps wouldn’t the straightest. So, you stayed hold up in the corner, drinking away your reoccurring issues. One who was too oblivious to see the issues before her very eyes.

If you could, you would slap the Yautja silly. Maybe knock some sense into her with the way she’s been acting as of late. It’s only gotten worse. You don’t know if the other two had something to do about it. But, they seemed to endure your presences at least. Why else would A’jiadh invite you over to spar and whatnot.

Said Yautja must be confused on why you hadn’t shown up. Oh well. He’ll shoot a message over to Zai and she can be the one to explain her misdeeds.

You used the back of your hand to wipe the evidence of fresh tears away, gone from sight. Just in time too.

Three bodies slid into the booth before you. People you know. As much as you wished to pull a smile on your face, the alcohol and sorrow that filled your veins prevented that. You kept a blank expression on your features and just stared at the dark wood.

“Uh oh, trouble in paradise,” one of the aliens teased and nudged you with her elbow. You held your tongue and just lightly shrugged, uncaring of any of their words.

On the other side of the table, one of them ‘oo’ed and gave Vincy a look. “She’s truly in trouble if she’s pouting this bad,” Cog snickered then sat back in the booth, arms thrown over the back of the couch. Lestgawnt, the only one not to poke at you, butted his foot against your ankle. You only drew your limbs into your torso and turned to face the wall.

The group silenced themselves. Vincy placed her hand on your shoulder. “Hey, what’s wrong? What happened? Is Zaikeh still comparing you to her species?” she questioned with a softer tone time around. You sniffled and rubbed at your running rose with the back of your hand before nodding timidly.

Cog huffed and shook her head. “I can’t believe her! Does she not see you’re not a Yautja. I sweat, Yautjas are so full of themselves!” she muttered mostly to herself then leveled her gaze on you. “You know you are more than welcome to stay with one of us and get away from her. Clearly she doesn’t appreciate you the way you deserve.”

That tugged a smile onto your lips. You appreciated her. All them actually. Living with three aliens that knew little about humans was difficult. Until they landed here. There may not be many humans here but the two you found were great. Then there was Lest, a Jakor. He was cool to hang around with.

You glanced at each of them. All of their eyes were on you, even Lest’s. “Thanks but no thank you. I-I don’t want to leave her. I just need to get her to understand this comparison hurts me. Yautjas… they’re fucking stubborn.” Your curse and true words brought upon laughter amongst the table.

“I don’t know why you don’t just leave her ass. There are plenty of options around here. Like…” Vincy leaned on the table with her elbows and pointed into the crowd. “Like her. Damn, I want a piece of that.” More laughter bolstered into the air. You followed her finger to find a random alien that you didn’t even know the name of. Yes, she was attractive but Zaikeh had your heart.

Everything else about her was fine. She protected you, clothed you, sparred gingerly with you, taught you things you never thought were in existence. This was just the one thing she slacked on. You downed the rest of your drink and slammed it down on the table.

Your eyes met Cog on the other side of the table. “Let’s dance or sing. I need to get off of my ass. I need to get her off of my mind.” You couldn’t just sit in this corner for the rest of the night before you had retire back to your shared quarters. And face the Yautja after storming off. You dragged a hand over your features at the thought then shooed Vincy from your side.

The woman scooted out and offered your hand which you gladly took. She hauled you out of the booth and up onto your feet within the span of a couple of seconds. Lest and Cog moved out as well and guided you towards the dance floor packed with other bodies.

Vincy gave you a goofy look before rocking with the beat of the music. You couldn’t the small giggle that broke your tense shoulders.

With the alcohol in your system working its magic, you began to dance out your heart. Everything that’s been weighing on you as of late started wash off of you. It was relaxing to feel all your troubles just leave. You laugh and giggled and danced alongside your three friends.

From being on the run with a trio of Bad Bloods to cultural differences between you and Zai, to dance away the night was what you been needing. All it took was a few cups of alcohol to get you dancing. To feel the beat of the music draw you in and let the worries of your life wash away. You couldn’t help giggling every so often and bumping into any of your friends. Your steps are a little wobbly.

A couple of more drinks down the hatch had you standing on the only stage in the bar. One of your arms is slung over Vincy’ shoulder as she keep you standing. A microphone like device held in your hands as you sung out your heart.

Out of the billions of songs they had, you found the one you needed to let loose your frustrations.

Human by Christina Perri.

The lyrics appear upon a transparent screen but you didn’t need them. Not when it was sung from the depths of your heart. This song was heavily connected to your life at this very moment. It was fate to find this song when all your troubles began.

Eyes of many watched as the words, the lyrics poured from your lips like a waterfall. Every word pronounced with all the hurt you’ve had building up.

Tears sting your eyes, on the verge of crying in front of the crowd. Yet, you were in your own world. The music and alcohol working its magic on you. It loosened up your tense emotions, letting you be free.

When the first tear rolled down your face, you opened your eyes when you felt a familiar stare. Instantly, your gaze darted to the entrance to find Zaikeh, standing there, a little out of breath. Her stance was tense, eyes pinned onto your trembling frame held up by Vincy. Her mandibles drew in tight to her face as she straightened her posture and watched the door.

“But I’m only human,” you sun directly in the microphone, hoping the words finally hit Zaikeh in the heart. Anything to get it through her thick skull that her comparison is hurting rather than helping. There’s nothing you could do to change yourself into what she wants.

“And I bleed when I fall down. I’m only human.” These lyrics meant a lot to you. It was not just the song but words you meant deep down. You can only be, do so much until you hit your limitations. The brick wall you couldn’t get passed or it would kill you.

You cried, shoulders sobbing and shaking. Vincy held you tighter, afraid you were going to topple over at the slightest breeze. “And I crash and I break down. Your words in my head, knives in my heart. You build me up and then I fall apart. ‘Cause I’m only human.” Zaikeh kept her eyes locked onto your form, watching as every tear fell and stained not only your cheeks but the metal floors as well.

The Yautja was glued to her spot and could only see the pain in your face as the words hit her. Vincy pulled you into a straighter position and off the stage as the song ended. You buried your face into her shoulder, body shaking with each heartbroken sob. Each one striking the black female straight into her heart.

Instantly, she was pushing her way through the crowd towards the group. Some of the members glared up at the Yautja only to realize who and what she is and backed off.

As she moved towards you, Lest and Cog saw the incoming danger and put themselves between you and Zaikeh. A scowl on each other faces. Cog crossed her arms and was ready to face down Zaikeh if it came down to that. Vincy kept tugging at you waist to get you away from the trouble about to rise. You latched onto her and stumbled with each step to keep up.

The human and Jakor didn’t stand a chance against Zaikeh and shoved the two of them out of her way. Cog slammed into another person while Lest was knocked into a wall. Vincy was the only one that stood in her pathing. She marched up to her, ready to pull you from the human. Vincy shoved you behind her and bared her teeth up at the Yautja in aggression.

“You aren’t allowed to see her! You fucked up and aren’t allowed to be around her,” Vincy snarled and pointed an challenging finger up at her. Zaikeh just stared down at this girl who barely reached her waist. She quiet literally grabbed Vincy by the head and picked her up.

Vincy screamed a war cry and swung and kicked at the Yautja, looking like a kitten trying to fight its mother. Zai simply dropped her off to the side then roared straight into the human’s face. The brown haired woman froze, stunned at the loudest of her roar.

This silence the rest of the bar. Everyone’s eyes on the two of you now. You picked up your head and found Zai’s attention had returned to you. She crowded your space and pushed you against the nearest wall. Your hands were grabbed and pinned to the hard surface she trapped you to. It was pointless to even attempt to fight this massive beast who owned your heart.

A whined built up in the back of your throat. A new fresh set of tears falling down your cheeks. You hiccupped, head tilted all the way back to expose your throat to her without meaning to. The alcohol in your system doing wonders.

It was heavy on your breath. Zaikeh could smell it. A huff sounded from the lumber giant. She reached down and easily tossed you onto her shoulder. On her heel, she spun around and marched out of the bar, not giving your three friends a look.

Not like any of them could do a thing to save you from your mate.

In the confides of your room, she set you down on the cool tile. At this point, you come to realize that this wasn’t your shared bedroom. This is your space on their ship. What was going on? There’s A’jiadh and Mai’tuiudh too. With all of their stuff packed up. You whined and clutched onto the arm Zaikeh offered you. Otherwise you would’ve been head over heels in the worst way possible.

“What’s… what’s happenin’?” you slurred, wobbling a little. There wasn’t a clear thought in your mind right now.

The Yautja looked down at you and held you to her thigh. “We are leaving,” she answered. A’jiadh and Mai were moving supplies into the ship. A human sounded from you.

“Oh, nice.” It didn’t register inside of your brain what was happening or what that meant. You were in your own la-la land, happy as can be. She must have realized this and huffed before carrying you into your original bed. It felt like heavy to lay on.

She tucks in the blankets tightly to your body. A waterskin was set off to the side, within reach. You hummed and tried to reach up towards her. Something inside of you felt angry towards her but you couldn’t place your drunk finger on it.

A soft kiss was placed to your forehead. You were out like a light. A morning full of fun surprises were going to meet you the next time you woke up. One including a raging hangover.

#yautja #predator #yautja x reader #yautja x you #alien vs predator #predator x reader #yautja x human #predator x you #predator x human #x reader #Zaikeh

[hamburgerhelpersotherhand]

Infatuation Rewritten - Chapter 1

Joe Goldberg x Reader (ft. Love Quinn)

Previous | Masterlist | Next

Summary: Love's longtime friend moves back to LA. Fortunately, Joe (Will) never had too much trouble adapting (Season 2).

Warnings: Alcohol consumption (we're all adults here), Joe actually loses his mind a little at the end.

Now for something nobody expected! The long-awaited rewrite for Infatuation... I have 40 pages of this, by the way. I'd like for *some* of them to see the light of day... and so I've told myself: If I wait for it to be perfect, It'll never be posted. I hope you all enjoy, and feel free to share your thoughts! xoxo Ona

My eyes roamed the list of names by the front door of the apartment complex. There were about four total, so finding yours was the easiest part. The hardest step came in the form of mustering up the courage to press the buzzer. But, was it really a trouble with courage? The more I thought, as my finger hovered over the button, the more I began to consider it to be uncertainty.

I pause and reach my other hand into my pocket. My fingers slide across the screen of your phone, and I remind myself why I'm here. Simply put, I’m here to give you your phone back. I found it on the passenger’s seat of my car and almost thought to tell Love… Instantly, a part of me knew she would’ve pried it from my grip to give to you herself – and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity for us to speak again, this time unmonitored by her perceptive gaze and sharp ears… and without the alcohol in your system.

Last night, you clung to Love as she touched you tenderly, playing the role of your dutiful sober saviour. She hosted a dinner and she invited her friends. One of them was you.

“A good friend,” She had called you. The last she’d spoken to you was ten years ago, and I guess I hadn’t realized good friends stay out of reach for a decade at a time. It didn’t matter how much time had split you two apart, though, because Love embraced you with a warm smile and open arms. There wasn’t any malice, no judgement either. She was just happy to have you back in her life. When you got too drunk to take public transportation, Love tried to coax you into staying the night. You wouldn’t budge, even with a slipping tongue, fluttering eyes, and a head too heavy to stay upright. So she compromised: you let her coddle you, sober you up just enough, and I drove you home. It wasn’t even that late, Love just couldn't stop pouring you wine after wine after wine. You seemed like you needed it, though. Tense as you were. Pent up little thing.

“What’s your relationship like with Love?” I asked, feeling rather bold with your inebriated self. The image of her hand resting on your thigh flashed in my mind. I laughed. “She hadn’t mentioned you until you’d moved back to LA. She practically can't shut up about you now.”

You shifted in your seat like a child. No position in my car seemed comfortable for you, and you had made it more than obvious.

“She’s a good friend.” You responded and looked out the window like it meant something. Love had said the same thing — I believed you both — but I felt as though you were withholding something else from the conversation. The annoying bell on your purse jingles as you tuck it closer to your side.

“You two seem close. Should I be concerned?” I then asked teasingly, laughing to fill the awkward tension of a silent car ride. I wanted to spark something in you, but you brushed it off as you curled your arms around your waist.

“I think I had too much to drink…” I glanced at you, and I was suddenly nervous. Your coat was askew, hanging off your shoulders. I knew you were drunk, but your direct announcement sounded to me as a warning.

“Tell me if you need to throw up, okay?” You slowly nodded before slotting your forehead against the cool car window. We remained like that until you got home, choosing to stumble your way for a block to feel a semblance of privacy – but I watched you walk up those steps. I knew your building, and you were still too fucked up to realize.

I pull your phone out of my pocket and look it over one more time. My thumb runs over the plastic case before turning it around and looking at myself in the black reflection.

Your phone is dead. Has been since I found it. None of my chargers fit into the port, unsurprisingly. It’s one of those phones where the keyboard slides out, for Pete's sake. Your phone is more than a few generations old. A brick. I chewed my fingers raw trying anything I could to get it started again – I wanted to pry, really. I’ll be honest with you here, I really wanted this glimpse into your personal affairs.

I wondered, exasperatedly, about what you were hiding behind this screen. Clutching it tighter into my palm, I lift my free hand and press the buzzer.

A few long moments after the sound, I hear a click.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Y/N. It’s Will –” I begin to say, ready to explain myself in the same manner I had rehearsed at home, eating breakfast, in the car, and on my way up the steps. However, you cut me off immediately.

“Do you have my phone?”

My heart skips a beat and I’m momentarily stunned. I blink a few times before speaking.

“Yeah, actually.” I replied. “I found it on the passenger seat this morning, I guess I didn't see it when I got home last night.”

“I’m going to buzz you in.” Perfect.

After hearing the buzzer, the door clicked. I made my way inside. The stairs were wooden and creaky, the walls showing obvious water damage, and the lights hummed obnoxiously. Obviously, none of this was of your doing. Your landlord just didn’t care.

Your door’s paint was chipping off, revealing the cracked wooden layer underneath, but the rusted numbers on your door somehow looked worse. I knocked.

I heard the shuffling of your feet from behind the door before it opened. When your head peeked out, you gave me a smile and extended your hand.

I momentarily look at it, thinking… Right. I drop your phone into your awaiting palm. I almost thought you wanted me to reach out as well. That would’ve been too good, right?

“May I use your bathroom?” I ask.

Your mouth opens momentarily, as you look away and off to the side. There’s nothing there, you’re simply thinking it through and disappearing into your head again.

“Sure.” You then reply, reluctantly scooting back and giving me my first glimpse into your apartment.

If only you knew how ecstatic I was to slip through the crack of your front door. My heart thumps excitedly, as I waste no time looking around. By the door sits a coat hanger with a few pairs of shoes around its feet.

“Should I take off my boots?” I ask.

“Yeah, actually. I’d appreciate it.”

I untie the laces and slip them off my feet. Then, just as I drop them by the coat hanger, you beckon me to follow.

Your apartment is a fair size, with one large space making up both the kitchen and the living room. Right of the front door, a short hallway leads us to a room. As you continue past the door, I slow myself and look to my left. Your hallway has a little louvred closet, and I can’t help but reach out and open it. There’s nothing exciting inside, only white bed sheets.

“The bathroom is over here.” I suddenly hear you say from within the bedroom. I close the closet and hurry along, hesitantly making my way into your room.

I examine the layout of your furniture: your bed is made, your dresser tucked away in the corner, your desk by the window, and your small bookcase right by its side. I take another look toward your window: It overlooks the front of the building, I think. I want to look around more, but I’ve already entered an uncomfortable silence through this simple observation… you’re bound to find it weird. Hell, you’re already finding it weird – my being here – if your reluctance to me using your bathroom is anything to go by.

“Thanks.” I tell you, nodding in your direction and scooting by to enter the bathroom. I peer over my shoulder, however, and take another peek into your bedroom before shutting the door.

In the bathroom, I made my way to the toilet and listened to your shuffling from the other side of the door. I lifted the seat without paying much attention, and stilled when I heard you leave the bedroom entirely. I didn’t really need to go to the bathroom, but I wasn’t lying when I said I needed to use it.

I waited a moment, lowered the toilet seat again, and didn’t bother flushing or washing my hands. The sound could set you off that I was finished, and I definitely wasn’t finished. I needed the opportunity to snoop just a tad bit more. I unlocked and creaked the bathroom door open, observing the quiet room with more attention than I had before.

Stepping out of the bathroom, I leave the door open. My head snaps in the direction of your bedroom door and I pleasantly find it shut from the rest of your apartment. You’re making this too easy. I make my way around quietly, being careful with my steps as I approach your nightstand with a familiar object glinting in the natural sunlight of the room: your phone, on its charger. When I press the button on its side, the logo appears as it powers on.

I take the time needed for the phone to boot up as an excuse to look about your room. The bookcase, which I had only glanced at before, takes shape infront of me. My hand drifts along the spines of the books… and I feel unsatisfied. You have a small selection of kitschy modern romance novels. My judging eyes shift to your dresser, the framed pictures sitting on top catching my attention. I don't recognize anyone, but a weird feeling washes over me. You’re not in any of these pictures. I feel a… disconnection… from the room. My eyes move elsewhere and I catch sight of a few unopened cardboard boxes against the wall near the bedroom door. They’re folded. Unused. I wonder briefly as I look back down to your phone. It’s open.

Unlocking it was easy, no password. You know, the good thing about an older cellphone model is how easy it is to just… get in. I flip your phone over and pop the back right off. I slide the chip out of my pocket and right into place. Once everything is back in its place, I unlock your phone and fully install the hardware. As much as I would like to start snooping about your phone now, I close it and set it back down on your nightstand. I make my way back into the bathroom, pulling my phone out all the while. I open the freshly installed app and bite at my lip as I see the device sync up. Done.

I flush the toilet, wash my hands, and make my way out of the bedroom. When I step back into your living room kitchen, you’re seated at the short island, your back to the small living room.

“Thanks for letting me use your bathroom,” I say, making my way back to the front door. You swivel the chair as I walk by and watch me duck for my boots.

“Thanks for bringing me my phone. I was almost going to head out to Anavrin–”

“Oh, I don’t work Saturdays. You would’ve missed me entirely.” I say all matter-of-factly, like an asshole. You shrink.

“Noted.”

As I loop the laces around, I look up at you. Your brows knit together and you avert your eyes from me. I watch you for another moment, smiling to myself. You’re nervous.

“What’re all the boxes for?” I ask, looking around the apartment. They’re a little sprawled out everywhere, but most of them are still folded up. I chew my cheek as I wonder – are you packing up to leave already? You just got here not even a week ago. Is that what’s gotten you so nervous? Cause I caught you? I bite my tongue and choose to rephrase my thoughts. “Still unpacking?”

“No, It’s… complicated.” You respond.

I nod my head and stand. Your eyes fleet to me for a second before drawing away. Is it me, Y/N? Am I making you nervous?

“Thank you again, for my phone.” You mumble, drifting off somewhere. I smile wide, and huff. You’re not a threat. A pest, likely. But not a threat.

“Yeah, no problem.”

I’m out the door not a moment later, spinning my keys while on the way to my car.

—

Back at my apartment, I notice the door’s unlocked.

I'm cautious as I walk through the threshold, peering ahead only to notice Love behind the counter.

“Love, I didn’t expect you to break into my apartment.” I tease, taking off my boots and shedding my jacket.

“I thought you’d be home,” she whines. “Besides, it’s not breaking in when you’ve got a key.”

I make my way into the kitchen, to her side, and slip my hands around her waist. She turns her head to look at me, a big smile on her face.

“Where were you?” She mumbles, still looking down at the counter.

“I went over to Y/N’s apartment,” I began, rolling the hem of her shirt between my fingers. “She forgot her phone in my car last night.” I kiss her shoulder.

“Mmh,” Love hums. “That was nice of you.”

I look over her shoulder, noticing the restaurant brochures infront of her.

“What were you doing here?”

“Looking for something to order. I don’t really want to cook again tonight.”

I lift my hands off her hips, placing them on either side of the counter. I press forward, and slide one of the menus into view.

“This one seems good.” I whisper, inconsiderate of what I’m pointing to. I’ve got one thing on my mind right now, and it isn’t the brochures.

Catching onto my carelessness, Love turns around and faces me. She tilts her head and observes my face for a moment before sliding her arms around my neck.

“How did it go?” Love suddenly inquires about us again.

“It went well,” I tell her, keeping it short. Still, she pries.

“Tell me more,”

“Well, she showed me to her bathroom,” I look around, as though I was recalling the few minutes I stood in your apartment. I’ll keep the snooping to myself. “Aaand, that’s about it.”

Love thins her lip. She’s pensive for a moment. She thinks, and I watch her grapple with her thoughts as she looks about the kitchen. She clears her throat before speaking.

“Will,” She starts, her hand taps my chest and I watch it circle around. “I wouldn’t be asking you this if it wasn’t important, but… can you do me a huge favour?”

My hands find Love’s face, cupping her cheeks, and pressing her forehead to mine. My eyes search hers, and I pout.

“Anything for you,” I tell her. Anything.

“Forty has this thing tomorrow… I didn’t think ahead, and my plans are jumbled. But, this is really important.”

For a second, my stomach drops. I try not to let the horror show on my face as I’m convinced she’s about to glue me to Forty’s side for a day. But she continues.

“Y/N needs help clearing the apartment,” My eyes narrow, and I nod as I continue to listen. “You see… Will. It isn’t really my place to say this, but I thought you should know her mom passed away a few months ago. She’s been trying to sort through the estate, and they finally gave her the green light to clear out her old apartment. I can’t be there to help.”

Love’s hands slide over mine, cupping my fingers as I cup her cheeks.

“Are you free sometime tomorrow? Would you be able to help her out?”

With this revelation, the framed pictures sitting on the dresser make sense.

“I mean… yeah. I can do that.”

Love lights up at my response, hopping up for an intimate kiss. My hands fall to her ass, but she pulls away too soon. Always too soon.

“Thank you, Will,” She grins, tapping my chest again. “I’ll let her know.”

As Love pulls out her phone, I watch her tap away at the screen.

“You know, that entire complex looks unlivable. The place might have a rodent problem, too.” I say as she hits send.

“I know! I told her she could stay with me,” Love leans her head against my chest with a frustrated huff, slipping her phone onto the counter.

“You both already spend so many afternoons together,” I begin, sliding her head up to look at me. My fingers brush her cheek, and my next words come out hushed. “If she was around any more, I’d never have you to myself.”

Her eyes flutter as my hands brush baby hairs out of her face. I hum, and lean in for another kiss.

“Will,” she starts, pressing her palm into my chest. She pushes me back, and I let her. “I’m not in the mood right now. Is that alright?”

I purse my lips… a little agitated, but I understand. I’m in the mood, but I understand. She doesn’t want to have sex, she wants to talk about you.

“Of course, Love,” I kiss her cheek. “Some other time.”

With a smile, she returns her attention to those stupid brochures. I agree to whatever she wants, whatever she’s in the mood for. I always do.

Once dinner’s sorted, we pair it with a movie on my tv. We cuddle, and it’s nice. During an intimate scene, a quiet one with rustling bedsheets, Love decides to speak.

“I’m glad you’re getting along well with Y/N.” She says with a hum, rubbing her face into my chest. I grunt when her hand squeezes my knee. “She appreciates it too, I know it. She doesn’t know many people in the city anymore.”

I tear my eyes away from the sex on tv to look Love in the eyes.

“Are you doing anything tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I have that thing with Forty. Someone seems a little forgetful tonight” I laugh and apologize, scolding myself. Of course… Tomorrow. I did forget. She turns her attention back to the movie. When I reluctantly return my own attention to the screen, I can’t help but scrutinise everything I see. Love seems pleased, watching the protagonist and her girlfriend lounge after what felt like the most drawn-out fucking I’d ever witnessed on tv. She’s probably thinking to herself: what a nice couple, happy, in love, and all tuckered out. But I feel differently. I see something I’m missing. We could be them, Love and I. But, instead of being wrapped in each other with more to do than to SAY, I think about the brick phone, I think about the lunch dates, I think about the selfishness of only reaching out when things became convenient, and I think about YOU. I think about the rust on your door, think about your dead mom, I think about how Love wants me to help you pack her things – like I’m some tool to be borrowed and Love’s the kind neighbour willing to lend – and I think about how Love touches you and I can’t help but wish I could crawl into your skin and rip you up from the inside.

The bell on your bag rings in my ears, jingling as you tap it over, and over again. Should I feel threatened by you? Because I do, even when everything about you proves to me you’re no threat at all. You’re meek, small, pathetic. Despite it all, you’ve stepped into my yard, trampled the very bushes I’ve trimmed and watered to perfection, and made yourself cozy against the love of my life. And, like a call to battle, the bell stirs something in me.

But you’re innocent, I cry in my head. You’re not Peach. You’re no evil mastermind, and stepping into someone else’s yard doesn’t mean much when you’re a helpless rabbit. Your mom is dead, you’re grieving. I think about you, in my car, curled in on yourself, skin exposed. Scared. I grit my teeth at the thought.

When Love departs, just after the movie ends, I spend some time catching up on your messages. That’s all I can really do, actually. With such an old model, your system doesn’t allow access to anything, anywhere, anytime. Just the text messages. I scroll to find your mention of me dropping by earlier.

‘Left my phone in Will’s car. He dropped it off.’

‘He’s the best <3’ Love responded.

About twenty minutes after that, Love let you know I’m replacing her tomorrow.

‘We can reschedule.’ You tried, but Love tells you the plans are already made. You can’t run from this. Neither can I.

I recline on my couch, huffing as I read as far as your messages go. I couldn’t get the older logs but anything you send from here on out, I have access to. When the late hours of the night finally catch up to me, I look out my window at the flickering street lights, and I head to bed.

#joe goldberg x reader #joe goldberg #love quinn #love quinn x reader #yandere #x reader #yandere x reader #yandere joe goldberg #Joe Goldberg x Love Quinn

[xclowniex]

Every time people talk about how Israel isn’t losing as many people in wars, I want to groan so much that my throat gives up on me. Like, dude, why do you think that is? It’s not because Hamas doesn’t try. It’s the fucking Iron Dome, which takes a huge amount of money and portion of the budget to keep going. It’s because the buildings are specifically been designed with a shit ton of infrastructure that can survive missiles and rockets. It’s because there’s the bare fucking minimum in Israel of bomb shelters

You know that it’s actual regulation that almost every building needs to have some sort of shelter? They do this with flats too, my cousin and her boyfriend’s shelter is literally their bedroom because they NEED this and there wasn’t enough space to put it in other places. It used to be just shelters below buildings, but they’ve changed it to other rooms too because in the 90’s the chance of missiles which used toxic gas were becoming increasingly high (this is something my parents went through, once there was a missile attack, they were told it could be gas too so they couldn’t go to the shelter. What they had to do was stay in their homes and just put wet towels on ever window and door that had a gap in it. My parents were on the phone the entire time, they were both beyond terrified and my mum thought she was going to die)

And here’s the thing— Gaza could absolutely have that too! Gaza could have missile diverting technology, Gaza could have shelters, Gaza could have strong infrastructure that can survive bombings much better. But they don’t. And the reason— Hamas takes all of this aid supplied, billions of dollars, and either siphons it off for their leaders in Qatar to enjoy, or uses it to build their tunnels and buy more weapons. And it’s a fucking tragedy, when I think about it I start to feel sick and you should too. Because this is horrible, and Gazans deserve so much more than this. But they can’t have it, because their government (if you can even call the mess that is Hamas a government) has decided that their lives aren’t valuable enough

You can criticise Israel for its current assault on Gaza, absolutely. While the idea that the idf as a whole (not talking about individual soldiers, which is still horrific when it’s only a person and not a system, don’t get me wrong) is actively targeting civilians is ridiculously wrong, and leans into the ‘bloodthirsty Jew’ trope. What you can say is that while the idf provides warning, they still aren’t putting civilians high enough on their priority list. They’ll warn a family and help them get out if they’re about to bomb their house or near it, but they won’t not bomb it if the family refuses to evacuate. You can absolutely cut criticise that (just make sure you understand that, very upsettingly, this is a very common thing in war). But this— acting like Israel using aid to help its own civilians, and then implying that it’s its fault for somehow not doing the same for Gaza? This? Is fucking bullshit, and all you’re doing is showing that you care more about the perceived reality of the ‘evil oppressor Israelis who have never faced anything in their lives’ than you do about the truth and real people’s lives

(Also side note, why do they always point to Tel Aviv to be like ‘see! Israel isn’t affected by the war at all’?? Like, of course Tel Aviv isn’t going to be affected by rockets and missiles much. It’s well in the Iron Dome’s territory and very far from Gaza. If you want to see the devastation from this war for Israel you can go to Sderot, or any Bedouin village, or the Golan if you want to see what Hezbollah’s done. They just live in a fantasy world lol)

I 100% agree.

#israel #i/p #palestine #i/p war #gaza #ask clownie

[queendomkey]

Well, we've finally reached it. The song that made me first start crying on my initial TTPD listen.

There's so much to this song, so much about how we use up and discard the women who make culture. Clara Bow is about the women who get held up as touchstones posthumously / very late into their careers. Swift has stated that she pulled from actual examples used about her, but I can think of so many more that could've been pulled in board rooms.

You look like Gwen Stefani, you look like Brittney Spears, you look like a Spice Girl. I can think of so, so many examples, beyond the ones who are listed in Clara Bow. We, as in the public consciousness, forget the women who shaped the imagery we love. Billie Holiday shaped jazz and pop, Anna May Wong as a pivotal film actress in Hollywood's earliest days, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe for rock and roll. For a very long time, any plus size woman trying to get into music was compared to Adele, and now it's Lizzo.

Young women, especially those in the media industry, are constantly, constantly inundated with women we are supposed to be like, but not entirely. We're supposed to be the better version of them, damned with faint praise. A line that has, in hindsight, stuck out to me was "You look like Stevie Nicks in '75, the hair and lips," because... Why '75?

Obviously, part of it is for the rhyme scheme. But the song is told entirely in quotes, something someone said. Swift looks like Stevie Nicks in '75, because she looks like Stevie when she was young, when she was "new," when she was dazzling.

That's not to say that Stevie Nicks isn't a powerhouse now. She still performs, still writes. She performed this year! In 2024! And yet, she will forever be frozen in '75, when she was with Fleetwood Mac and was releasing their self-titled album, in the throes of writing Rumorus. ( side note: please read the history of Rumours writing process. )

It's an endless cycle: women's ideas are taken, consumed by the public, and when only the bones remain, they're used to compare.

"Promise to be dazzling" is the ending line of the chorus - and it's both a beautiful, poignant reminder that the women listed in the song have captured audience's hearts and minds, and a threat. Promise us that you'll be dazzling, you'll forever be sixteen, forever hold up these ideals and stay the exact same.

I think Swift said it best herself, "There's this thing people say about celebrities, that they're frozen at the age they got famous." The demand is: promise to remain the newest thing, and we will always love you.

The truth is that, well, it's not possible. The promise is designed to not be kept. When public opinion turns on these women, it's to detract from their legacy of art.

Getting older is not a curse, it's a gift. We have so many public figures who didn't get that gift, who are frozen at 18, at 22, at 27. And yet, the societal demand is that women stay young, women can only be beautiful, can only be successful if they are young.

A couple of other songwriting notes.

"Did you know you'd be picked, like a rose?" Another question from imaginary men in meetings; did you know, you would be picked to be the new great thing? Did you know, that you too will begin to wilt under the pressure?

I love the repeats of "I'm not trying to exaggerate, but I think I might die if it happened to me / I might die if I made it." Because it relates back to that idea of how caustic fame is. How everyone around the Narrator (very much Swift, in this case) can see how she's being affected by it, and are indirectly praising her for being so strong. Neverminding that this entire album is a statement, a saying of "fame has drained me so, please let me off this pedestal."

But, didn't you know? "[You're] flesh and blood amongst war machines / You're the new god we're worshiping."

That final verse - You look like Taylor Swift, in this light, we're loving it. You've got edge, she never did. The future's bright, dazzling. Her delivery of the lines is soft, but the intent is clear. It doesn't actually matter who the imaginary board director is addressing - it doesn't matter which of the new generation of pop artists look, sound, act, are like Taylor Swift.

What matters, I think, is the warning. Don't let them do this to you. Do not let them tell you that youth is all you have, do not let them make you follow the mold of women before you, that you may only ever be bejeweled right now.

The future, too, is dazzling.

#ttpdminutes #the cassandra speaks #Clara Bow ttpd #Clara Bow TS #taylor swift

[oatbugs]

procrastination is starting to have its consequences finally

#on my friends living room floor they love together but one of them has been london for weeks or maybe months #to be with her love. im on a foam mattress from one of their beds next to a glass bottle of water opened by one of them #in a mug given to me by another. the weather felt like my childhood today and it also felt like 2 years ago. #(put space in the heavens Einstein's idea and hes your friend too so nothing to fear) around the table they drank and laughed and i thought #i hope you keep growing so full with the love you receive . i hope your appetite becomes insatiable from how used to it you are #and i know youre all leaving soon but i hope one day you miss this and that youll be happy you miss it #its worth missing i think #i thought he didnt care but he said after exams hes going walk around this area over and over #(this is near where he lived and where we visited almost daily for a year) #(hed come across the bridge on a lake) #we went where she used to live and at the entrance a fox sat calmly. it just yawned and stared. #it felt important somehow. i think maybe their impressions of me will never be close to how i feel inside but i think #i love them enough for that not to matter. i dont think theyll ever know this. i dont think if they did it would change much. #and seeing them smile makes my heart glow anyway. today i tried their malaysian tea the ginger burned my throat #they warmed my heart. hes going to canada soon and hes going to the US soon and shes going everywhere soon ill never understand #how were supposed to live with memories and with seperation and with the past but we do it anyway so i think it doesnt matter much #i wanted to write a poem for the lab rats with the fibre optic wires lit with blue forcing them to turn around and around #something about how im sorry that the two photon arrays burned the inside of your brain. im sorry about the sharp points of multielectrode #arrayes. im sorry about everything we do to you. she asked to see me tomorrow. im trying to have self control but i miss her so awfully #last night my friend talked to me and i updated on everything that happened with love and the lack of it and she just started laughing #and she told me about the same thing from her side. and she told me about how she loved london because she would walk the streets #and she felt like the people were her. and her eyes would go over the people and the bag of bagels and the construction men they probably #have a kid at home maybe shes a daughter. this kid is crying for her mother and the building you just walked past caused #blisters and pain and people died in it and very likely people were born in it. we talked for hours and i felt like #i was holding her hand just like that time she held mine watching a horror film. i love her so much #my friend is a genius and i remember her picking up the charms of my phone and staring at the leaf hanging from them. shes side stepping to #music drinking dangerous cider and cocktails from a movie and chit chatting with billionaires and undergrads #i love her dearly. his head covered in electrodes. she tells me about a syrian guy shes in love with and she says #what you feel and what i feel is like cocaine. ive tried a lot of fucking cocaine. #she says ive reminded her of what living actually feels like and to never put energy into someone who doesnt see me this way.

[franeridan]

I really wish yamato had gone with luffy and I love that he asked to be considered a crewmate anyway and that luffy told him he'd always have a place on the sunny so I a hundred percent consider him a mugiwara but in my ideal one piece where the war ended differently and ace is still alive yamato is his. like obviously ace is dead and he hadn't been a captain for a while before then anyway, but in my ideal one piece yamato belongs to him. he's a spades. he's ace's crewmate first and foremost.

#the way yamato talks about ace is so wonderful to me so beautiful #the certainty he had in ace being the one who'd spearhead the new age rivals the trust the mugiwaras have in luffy #the only reason he wants to be on luffy's crew is cause ace told him so much about luffy he decided if it wasn't ace it had to be luffy the #i have this thing in my brain that if the asl brothers had all actually become captains and stayed so #there's a whole bunch of luffy's allies that would have actually been split between them #like i mean the only reason why they're with luffy is that cause he's the closest thing but #had ace and sabo gotten there first some of them would have aligned more with them than with luffy #like take vivi for example she's DEFINITELY nakama and no one will take that from her #but are you seriously telling me had sabo had his own crew he wouldn't have managed to actually steal her away #some of the royals and nobles luffy befriended are so sabo coded they'd have joined his crew in a heartbeat had he had one #same with ace there's a bunch of mugiwara allies that are so ace coded he'd have swept them away so easily..... #no but that's not even it with yamato #like that's just me letting my brain go but with yamato it's like #on paper #dude saw the new king in ace he'd have followed him to the end of every sea had he been able to #had ace gotten there when he knew haki already...... #no yamatos definitely aces ace just lent him to luffy thats the hill I'll die on #on a side note i just read that one part where marco remembers ace whining that he wanted to go back to yamato #and i had forgotten that he smiles and cries at the memory #one hit ko a million hp lost i want to die what the hell marco my love marco my sweetheart 😭😭😭😭😭 #oh i love marco so much...... #i always loved him unreasonably even before the war when he'd barely done anything but the more oda writes about him #the more my love grows no one gets it he makes me so sad he deserves so much more my man my sweet 😭😭 #izo too........he gets there like “are you ready to die” “I've survived enough already” IZO MY LOVE 😭😭😭😭 #the wb pirates make me so sad man..... but marco and izo a million times more than anyone else sob sob they deserve better #sorry but i just had someone very angry abt what i said re vivi in my inbox so let me explain that #it was an exaggeration i wasn't being literal with it #no i do think understand specific circumstances it might have been true but i was exaggerating nontheless #very sorry the truth is i forget people actually read what i write m(._.)m #but also why be angry in my inbox I'm not even tagging these posts just unfollow me man

[arthur-r]

my baby sister is having a happy fits dance party in the yard i love her so much. i wish i could join her but i am stuck on this couch

#the regular arthur level of immobility is like. really high. so when im sick it just multiplies really bad #now when i stand up i don’t just get dizzy i also have a headache #and im just extra tired compared to always being tired already #so not leaving this couch any time soon. i have to feed the cats though #like it’s okay to feed them both meals at the same time i wasn’t able to get up to give them breakfast so i’m giving them a really big lunch #and then they’ll just skip dinner. and that’s something that my friends mom said was okay. but i should still feed them soon it’s supposed- #to be a big lunch in between not just dinner but bigger #so i have to do that eventually. but i wish i didn’t have to walk there it would be so much easier if i didn’t have to walk there #anyway she’s literally listening to dance alone so i feel really bad leaving her to dance alone tonight #i just physically can’t get myself out there right now i can’t #day 700-something of feeling like the dad stand in from the papaoutai music video #on the bright side im not going to work today. i told my boss im not feeling well and i have a fever so i can’t come into work #but i did it in a long paragraph and apologized but all he said was ‘‘Ok’’ #which. of all the people to read into how they text me my 50 something boss is a stupid one to care about #just kind of feel like im letting the restaurant down a little. it’s a small business there’s not a lot of room for people calling in sick #but i also dont want to get anyone sick and also i will reiterate that i am still not able to get up off this stupid couch #so odds are if i went to work i would drop pizzas and mess everything up anyway. i just still feel bad #wait also on the bright side i officially don’t have covid that’s also a bright side. like a brighter side than staying home from work #im still super scared of how i would take it if i got covid because little bugs like this take me down pretty bad. but i don’t so it’s fine #anyway im sorry for just talking about being sick it’s just kind of the only thing on my mind right now. hey message to all of my friends #because i know i get really nervous about this stuff. im perfectly okay and i get sick like this a lot and i’ve been sleeping it off and im- #nearly better at this point and it’s just a low grade fever. and im complaining about it because it’s annoying but i’ll be okay i promise #and i’m staying home from work and it’s just some little bug and i’m like this no matter what got me sick. so you don’t have to worry #i dont know if im making anybody nervous i just want to try my hardest to show that im okay just in case. i can tag anybody away from it too #i just am rambling the same way im always rambling about things but i really am okay. i love you guys #me. my post. mine. #delete later #illness tw

[foldingfittedsheets]

Buckle up for another unhinged story time. Now, as I’ve said before, I used to work at a sex shop. At one point I had three roommates and we all worked the same dildo slinging retail job and lived together. It was extremely sitcom.

Now, as you’d imagine, living with three other people who also talked about sex toys all day created a microcosm of people who were all extremely comfortable around sex toys and related topics. No one left dirty toys laying around but seeing things left in showers or showing off a new purchase was just a Tuesday.

After some life upheavals I ended up living with one of those roommates again, just me and her. For the sake of this story let’s call her Betty. Betty and I shared a two bedroom, and the layout was all the common spaces were an open floor plan and then one hallway formed a T, with my room and bathroom to the left and Betty’s to the right.

Well, one day my cousin calls me up. He’s coming to town for a visit and I offer to put up him, his wife, and their more… sheltered friend. (Unbeknownst to me there was a full Briefing for this girl before she met me so that I didn’t overwhelm her with my blasé attitudes towards- well, most things).

They drove in from two states over and it was a long drive. I had to work and couldn’t greet them or spend the first day together. So I told them to come grab my key so they could all shower off and settle in before me.

I arrived home later that night and found the atmosphere a little awkward at first. Things quickly warmed up and I charmed their friend, impressing my cousin with my immaculate respect for personal comfort levels. We had a lovely evening. By the time we all said goodnight I’d dismissed the initial tension as being tired after a long drive.

The next day we all decided to go to the zoo. I’m a morning shower person, but I let them go first while I made breakfast. After breakfast it was my turn and I hopped in the shower.

Midway through my eyes fixed on it. A little pink sex toy, sitting brazenly on the rim of the tub. Oh no, I thought. This was why things had been awkward yesterday! I left out a personal object because I’d literally forgotten to ever put them away by that point.

What I felt wasn’t embarrassment per se, because that emotion had been utterly eradicated by that point. Rather it was a deep shame that I’d leave out something that might make a guest feel uncomfortable. They told me their friend was sheltered and I had left out a sex toy, it was the epitome of rudeness!

I rejoined everyone and said, “I am so sorry! I didn’t realize I’d left that in the shower, that was so rude of me!”

My guests all exchanged a Look. I looked from my cousin to his wife, she glanced toward their friend, and their friend looked at my cousin. No one would look at me.

“Well…” my cousin finally said, “you didn’t tell us which room was yours yesterday.”

I blinked in confusion, Betty’s room and bathroom were basically just like mine.

“When we got here,” his wife continued, “we went to the other side first. In Betty’s bathroom.”

Reader, Betty’s bathroom.

Had been absolutely covered in dildos. Sex toys of all shapes and sizes covered every flat surface, the tub rim, the sink, the shelves. Wall to wall sex toys. Apparently Betty was doing a spring cleaning and had left her entire extensive collection out to air dry.

These three weary travelers had opened a door to the dildo dimension and had no idea how to react. To this day I have no idea what context clues they used to figure out Betty’s room from mine.

But when I’d come home they were lost in the sex toy shell shock, presumably wondering how they could ever talk about it with someone who felt it was okay to leave out every sex toy they own when expecting company in some kind of bizarre power play.

By the time they finished telling me about this we were all laughing so hard we were in tears.

“When we saw your bathroom with one little pink toy it was so discreet we didn’t even care!” They told me.

After my cousin and his crew had gone on their way I finally told Betty the whole story. She listened with eyes growing wider and wider and finally burst out, “That’s why they were so weird when I got home!!”

#ramblies #funny #story #writing #nsft #ffs foibles